7 Pul-i-Alam polling stations closed over insecurity

PUL-I-ALAM (Pajhwok): Independent Election Commission (IEC) officials in central Logar province on Sunday said seven polling stations have been closed in the provincial capital, Pul-i-Alam, due to insecurity.

IEC provincial committee head Khwaja Aminullah Fazli told Pajhwok Afghan News that seven of 20 polling stations were closed in Pul-i-Alam due to security threats.

“Under the plan, 20 polling stations should be active in Pul-i-Alam, but only 13 are active and the rest are closed due to security problems,” he said.

He said 20,000 people had so far registered as voters and the number would have been higher had all polling stations operational.

Babos, Shulak, Doshanbi, Daudkhel, Shahi Kala, Dasht Shaar and Onisayedan are areas where polling stations are closed, he said.

Mala Sardar Khan, headman of Daudkhel area, told Pajhwok that there was no polling station open in their area and no one had registered as voter.

Fazl Ahmad, a resident of Babos area, also said there was no polling station in their area and on one had so far registered.

“In the past elections, there were two polling stations in our area, but now not even one exists,” he said.

Provincial council deputy head, Abdul WaliWakil, also said polling stations in some of Pul-i-Alam areas were yet to be opened and the registration process had also been slow.

He said polling stations in seven areas had been closed since a month ago and that the local administration should help to reopen them.

Logar police chief Shapur Ahmadzai confirmed polling stations in some areas of Pul-I-Alam had to be closed due to security concerns.

He said security forces were trying to reopen the polling stations but local people should cooperate with them.

Besides Logar polling stations in a number of other provinces have been closed due to insecurity.

mds/ma

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