Herat residents accuse PC chairman of coercion

HERAT CITY (Pajhwok): A number of residents of western Herat province in a gathering on Monday accused the provincial council head of coercing people into taking part in protests against the police chief, saying they would not let anyone disrupt the province’s security situation.

Omaidullah Habib, an organizer of the gathering, said Kamral Alizayee, head of Herat provincial council, was holding protest demonstrations for his personal interests in order to stop the provincial police chief from working.

He said demands being presented by the public representative were not the demands of Herat people and he encouraged people for demonstrations to attain his own interests.

Habib said they would stop Alizayee and his supporters from entering the police headquarters.

Abdul Rahman Mulavizada, another organizer of the gathering, said that the aim of the meeting was to support Afghan security forces and stand against coercion in Herat. He said they would fight anyone who confronted Afghan security forces.

Meanwhile, Kamran Alizayee, rejected allegations of coercion and said that 20,000 people including 1,000 of them armed would gather in front of Herat police headquarters on Tuesday for stopping the police chief from his job.

He said they would react if the police chief showed any hostile act against them. “Removal of Herat police chief is a demand of Herat people”, he added.

Alizayee accused the police chief of incompetence and corruption in police districts of Herat city.

However, Sultan Daud Sultan, Herat police chief, called Alizayee’s activities against the law and said Afghan forces would respond to illegal acts.

A week earlier, the provincial council members and a number of shopkeepers in Herat city complained about raising kidnapping cases, robberies and targeted killing in the city and set a nine-day deadline for the police chief to resign from his job.

mds/ma