Balkh

MAZAR-I-SHARIF (Pajhwok): Civil society activists in northern Balkh province lamented the lingering election crisis on Monday, saying the delay was bruising Afghanistan’s image internationally.

In an exclusive interview with Pajhwok Afghan News, leading social activists in Mazar-i-Sharif expressed regrets over the near-shattering of their dream of a landmark democratic transfer of power.

Ghulam Bashir, member of the Balkh Social Movement (BSM), said common Afghans had changed a lot in the past one decade but their political leadership kept feuding.

MAZAR-I-SHARIF (Pajhwok): Balkh Governor Atta Mohammad Noor on Thursday said he would never accept a government elected through electoral fraud.

Addressing a Martyrs Week gathering in Mazar-i-Sharif, the provincial capital, he declared the Abdullah-led Reform and Unanimity team the winner of the presidential ballot.

In the same breath, the accused the administration of President Hamid Karzai, the Independent Election Commission (IEC) and the Dr. Ashraf Ghani camp of massively rigging the vote.

 
MAZAR-I-SHARIF (Pajhwok): Residents of northern Balkh province say their foremost demand from the next president is good governance.
Dealing with illegal armed groups, doing away with administrative corruption, extending development activities to remote areas and promoting education and agriculture sectors are other demands of Balkh residents from the next president.