Support to presidential runner Ghani swells

KABUL/MAIMANA (Pajhwok): The Ismaili community on Thursday organised a rally in Kabul, pledging support to leading presidential candidate Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, who also mustered such backing in northern Faryab province.

Hundreds of the Ismaili community members attended the rally organised under the aegis of Paiwand Milli Party of Afghanistan.

The participants said they supported Ahmadzai for his clear agenda and programmes, which they believed could guarantee a better future for Afghanistan.

Syed Mansur Naderi, the community’s spiritual leader and founder of the party, said they had been following Ahmadzai’s plans for the last few months and were convinced his ideas were unambiguous and better than others.

He said their party had members in 14 provinces and all of them saw Ahmadzai the right man to be the next president of Afghanistan.

In northern Faryab province, hundreds of people, including Junbish-i-Milli Afghanistan Party of Abdul Rashid Dostum, organised a gathering in support of Ahmadzai.

Junbish deputy provincial chief Syed Ahmad Syed said about 2,000 people belonging to various from political and civil society groups attended the gathering that marked the opening of a campaign office for Ahmadzai in Maimana, the provincial capital.

He said members of Junbish, the Right and Justice and Refah-i-Milli parties attended the rally and voiced support to Ahmadzai.

He said they had formed eight committees tasked with establishing 17 campaign offices in Maimana and 16 in districts.

Chief campaigner for Ahmadzai in Faryab, Rahmatullah Turkistani, called the former finance minister as appropriate person to lead the country.

The campaign’s Ulema Gul Ahmad believed Ahmadzai and his first vice-presidential choice Dostum could steer the country out of the conflict.

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