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Ousted presidential runners vow joint fight on IEC

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22 Oct 2013 - 22:06
author avatar
22 Oct 2013 - 22:06

KABUL): Some disqualifying presidential candidates on Tuesday alleged the electoral body removed their names from the initial list despite meeting all candidacy conditions.

The Independent Election Commission (IEC) earlier announced a preliminary list of presidential hopefuls, disqualifying more than half of 26 registered candidates for the April vote.

IEC head Ahmad Yousuf Nuristani said dual citizenship and failure to provide enough voters’ signatures were among the reasons the IEC removed 16 candidates from the list.

Each candidate had been required to collect 100,000 signatures from would-be voters representing all of the country’s 34 provinces.

Most of the 10 approved are seen as pro-Karzai and favorites figures like former foreign minister Zalmai Rassoul and elder brother Qayyum Karzai.

Others approved include Abdullah Abdullah, a foreign minister and runner up in the 2009 election; Ashraf Ghani, the former Transition Commission head, Karzai adviser and former finance minister. Abdurrab Rasul Sayyaf is another frontrunner who survived the cull.

A disapproved presidential hopeful, Hamidullah Qaderi, told Pajhwok Afghan News he had not been explained the reasons which led to his removal from the initial list.

He asked the IEC to share with him and his representatives if his documents had any problems, saying the decision of his disqualification was not acceptable to him. He accused the IEC of having adopted a two-faced policy with candidates.

Qaderi said he would visit the IEC office tomorrow and would ask election officials about the reasons behind his removal from the list.

He said 10 unsuccessful candidates, including him, had decided to form a coalition and fight for their rights. The 10 men included Ahadi, Farooq Azam, Daud Sultanzoy, Dawar Ahmad Naadi and Sarwar Ahmadzai, he said, hoping other disapproved candidates would join them.

Sultanzoy confirmed Qaderi’s remarks, calling the IEC decision as unjustified. He said he had relinquished his American nationality and had provided the IEC with proof in this regard.

Ahadi also said the decision was not acceptable to him because he met all conditions for the candidacy. “It was a merciless act. We are totally against it,” the former commerce minister said, adding the IEC did not consult him about problems in his documents.

The IEC chief, Nuristani, said documents of all candidates were impartially assessed, saying the disqualified candidates could complain to the IEC.

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