President appoints electoral commissioners

KABUL (SW): President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani finally issued the ultimate list of commissioners for the electoral commissions on Tuesday.

This came after weeks of negotiating with political figures and civil society activists. President Ghani on Tuesday issued a decree with names of the commissioners.

Najeebullah Ahamadzai, Abdul Qadir Qurishi, Maliha Hassan and Wasimah Badghisi have been appointed as commissioners at the IEC for five years while Meazullah Dowlati, Rafi Bidar and Gula Jan Abdul Badi have been appointed as commissioners at the IEC for three years.

Also, Ghulam Dastgir Hidayat, Abdul Basir Faiz and Ali Reza Rohani have been appointed as commissioners at the Independent Electoral Complaints Commission (IECC) for five years. On the other hand, Humira Haqmal and Abdul Aziz Aryai have been appointed as commissioners at the IECC for three years.

Commissioners at IEC

1. Najeebullahd Ahmadzai, Pashtun from Paktiya appointed for 5 years
2. Abdul Qadir Qurishi, Uzbek from Balkh appointed for 5 years
3. Maliha Hassan, Hazara from Kabul appointed for 5 years
4. Wasima Badghisi, woman rights activist,Tajik from Badghis appointed for 5 years
5. Mazullah Dowlati, university lecturer, Aymaq form Ghor appointed for 3 years
6. Rafiullah Bidar, IHRC employee, Pashaie from Nangarhar appointed for 3 years
7. Dr. Gula Jan Abdulbadi, Sayad, university lecturer, from Kabul appointed for 3 years

Commissioners at IECC

1. Ghulam Dastgir Hidayat, IHRC employee and Supreme Court member, Pashtun form Maidan Wardak appointed for 5 years
2. Abdul Aziz Aryai, Uzbek form Badakhshan appointed for 3 years
3. Humira Haqmal, university lecturer and woman rights activist, Pashtun from Kabul appointed for 3 years
4. Ali Reza Rohani, Hazara from Ghazni appointed for 5 years

The commissioners took the oath of allegiance from the President on the occasion. Ghani said on the occasion that the appointment followed a candid and detailed process, and now the commissioners are independent in their work. The President noted that the electoral commissions need an overhaul, and he hoped the new commissioners would pay serious attention to the issues at hand.  

The President hinted that the biometric identity cards would be issued in line with the clauses of the Constitution.

Abdullah Abdullah, the Chief Executive Officer, said on the occasion that the electoral commissioners have a fundamental task on their hands hence they should be candid in their actions. He said on the occasion that the appointed commissioners should appoint their chairmen and deputies in their first meeting.

ENDS