SAR-I-PUL (Pajhwok): The vote audit process was expected today Sunday but could not be started as yet due to absence of Independent Electoral Complaints Commission (IECC) observers, officials said.
The special audit of 10 percent of total 137,630 votes and 15 percent of the total 102,012 votes was expected to start today.
However, Esmatullah Mal, a commissioner of Independent Election Commission (IEC), today noon said that IECC observers did not turn up again and they would start the process whenever the IECC sent its observers.
He said that the IEC would make a decision regarding the vote audit process if IECC observers’ continued to be absent.
Yousuf Rashid, head of Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FFEFA), expressed concern over absence of IECC observers in the process and said they had to be present there because the vote audit process was among IECC’s decisions.
Zabihullah Sadat, an IEC spokesman said that besides the audit of the mentioned votes, votes of 298 polling stations belonging to Badakhshan, Takhar, Sar-i-Pul, Faryab, Ghazni, Nangarhar, Helmand, Kandahar and Kabul would also be recounted. He said that the recount process of votes had been started.
Wahidullah Taron, IEC administrative chief in Kabul, also said that the recount of votes belonging to 21 polling stations in Kabul has been started and it would be finalized until the end of today.
According to a Pajhwok Afghan News report, the recount process of votes has been stopped in Sar-i-Pul province.
IECC officials in Sar-i-Pul said that the process was stopped following an order form the commission’s central office.
Supporters of presidential candidate, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah also boycotted the votes recount process in Sar-i-Pul province.
Mds/ma

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