KABUL (PAN): President Hamid Karzai rejected the formation of coalition government following the announcement of his victory as a result of the August 20 presidential polls.

Addressing a news conference here on Thursday, Karzai said: "Coalition government is meaningless." There would have been no need for holding the elections by spending millions of dollars if the aim was to form a coalition government, said the president.

At the same time, he said, he was supporting national reconciliation and would continue the same. He said though Dr. Abdullah cast his vote for Younus Qanuni in the previous elections, he (Karzai) asked him to continue as foreign minister.

About the huge number of complaints filed with the Election Complaint Commission (ECC) and his reaction if the polls were declared unlawful on the bast of that, Karzai said this was a serious problem and investigations must be carried out if there was any rigging. "I don't think there is any such possibility," the president quipped while referring to the complaints regarding rigging and fraud.

He said complaints and problems were reported during election in every country, but foreign media highlighted the matter more than it really was. He said the Afghan Independent Election Commission (AIEC) was acceptable to him as it was free and headed by Afghans.

Karzai, who won 54.6 per cent votes in the impartial results released last week, seemed in jubilant mood during his today's news conference. He was accompanied by his first and second deputies Qasim Fahim and Karim Khalili.

Karzai thanked the Afghan people, the election commission, security forces and the organizers of the poll process for their cooperation and support to the government during the election.

He said holding of the election was a great success for the government in face of the violence and other problems faced by Afghanistan. He said the election process was successful as it was conducted and completed by the AIEC.

He said foreigners should respect the views of the Afghan people and let the election commission complete its work by announcing the final results. He assured the people that there would be no problem after announcement of the final results.

He said all candidates, who participated in the elections, were people of this land and they would work for the interest of the country.

To a question about war criminals, Karzai said Afghans faced many problems in the past years. He said they should not be beguiled by the foreigners and should set aside the past and work for a better future. He said people were passing a peaceful life over the past eight years and they used their vote with their own free well.

About the allegations from some candidates, Karzai said he was silent and would stay silence despite all what had been said about him. "It is my responsibility to promote unity," said Karzai.

He added that he had no rival and all the candidates were his brothers. He avoid to say something when asked about the statement of a senior UN official asking for a second round of elections. He said he did not want to say more than that to pay respect to the views of the Afghan people.

He said he had vast plans for the country. Those plans included for the world, region and neighbouring countries, with special relations with Pakistan and to ensure peace. "The future of Afghanistan is bright," said the president.

dk