GARDEZ (SW) – A number of candidates in Paktia province have stopped the recount of votes for the Wolesi Jirga (lower house) by the Independent Election Commission.
The protesting candidates claimed the IEC should hold the recount process until the Independent Election Complaint Commission reviews their complaints. Siddiq Ahmadkhail and Taj Gardezi, two such candidates, said they would not allow the recount to proceed until their complaints are addressed.
They claimed rigging has taken place in a number of districts, and the IEC should nullify the rigged votes.
Meanwhile, the provincial head of the IEC, Khwaja Aminullah Fazli, has said the candidates should discuss their complaints with the IECC.
The secretary of IECC in Paktia, Ahmad Zaheen Muzafari, has said the candidates have been given three-day deadline to share their complaints with the electoral officials.
ENDS
