FARAH CITY (Pajhwok): Residents of western Farah province have urged the new provincial council (PC) members to fulfill their campaign pledges.
After being put on hold for seven months, final results from the April 5 polls sparked fraud allegations and subsequent protests in various provinces.
Syed Ahmad Qala Kahi, a local anti-corruption committee’s deputy head, told Pajhwok Afghan News the former council members had been unable to discharge their duties in an effective way. “Most of the previous members were corrupt and busy appointing their relatives on high government posts,” he added.
He continued the former public representatives had been a hurdle to development activities because they would demand their shares in projects.
However, he hoped the new members would serve the people with honesty and would try to honour their promises.
Farid Ahmad Haybat, a youth association head, claimed the former PC members instead of representing the public had been acting on the provincial authorities’ wishes.
Dr. Mohammad Hashim Danish, political parties’ coordination council head, also said the previous council’s incompetency paved the ground for corruption in the provincial administration.
“The nomination criterion for contesting the provincial council polls is very low. A person who files nomination should be at least a high school graduate.”
Danish said the previous members didn’t know their authorities and responsibilities, which had been the main problem.
He pinned hope on the new council, saying a number of its members represented political parties and won’t commit anything wrong for the sake of their parties.
But a losing candidate, Mohammad Juma Rafat, said the previous members had tried their level best to address people’s problems.
ra/ma
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