Returning from the summer recess, a number of Wolesi Jirga or lower house members in their first session on Saturday expressed concern over insecurity in the country and ‘fraud in the election process’ asking the government to take decisive action for dealing with them.
The parliament went on recess on July 23. The lower house held their first session today after the end their recess. Meshrano Jirga or upper house of the parliament would resume work on Tuesday.
The Wolesi Jirga’s today session discussed the country’s security situation and the Wolesi Jirga and district council election process.
Security situation
According to a Pajhwok Afghan News report, around 18,000 people have suffered casualties in the first eight months of the current year compared to 17,000 last year in the same period across the country.
The number of attacks took place last month (August) decreased by 32 percent compared to the previous month, but the last month’s attacks were deadlier as 2,800 people had suffered casualties.
In August, 17 people had suffered casualties in each attack compared to 12 casualties in each attack in July.
Large areas of southern Ghazni province were also collapsed to the Taliban for a few days in August.
Mohammad Naim Lalai Hamidzai, a lawmaker from Kandahar province, talking to today’s Wolesi Jirga session, asked other MPs to put aside other issues and focus on the security situation of the country.
He expressed concern over deteriorating security situation and said the Afghan force’ and civilians’ casualties have increased and the country’s highways had been more insecure compared to the past.
Hamidzai said that security officials always provided misinformation to people and urged they should be summoned to the lower house.
Mujib Rahman Samkani, a lawmaker from Paktia province, said that security situation in Paktia was also deteriorated as militants were always searching passengers on Kabul-Gardiz highway.
Paktia officials, who should have worked for the security of the province, are declaring that the provincial capital is vulnerable to collapse, he said.
He said if security situation in Paktia not improved, some other provinces around the capital Kabul would also collapse to militants.
Talking to the government officials, he said, “If you are unable to improve security for the public, then let people themselves hold their security,”
Jafar Mahdawi, a lawmaker from Kabul, said, “In the past, we were witnessing one massacre incident in the west of Kabul, but now we see it every week, people are disappointed from due to the weakness of Afghan forces,”
Around 200 people killed or wounded in suicide attacks and car bombing, that targeted an educational center and a sports club in Dasht-I-Barchi area of Kabul on August 15 and September 5.
Abul Rahim Ayubi, an MP from Kandahar, said around 4,000 Afghans were killed or wounded during the last one and half months.
He said security officials should be disqualified considering to the country’s security situation.
Wolesi Jirga speaker, Abdul Raouf Ibrahimi, also expressed concern over security situation of the country and said security officials should respond to the public.
He asked internal security and defense affairs commissions to summon interior and defense ministers as well as the National Directorate of Securiyt (NDS) chief to the lower house.
Fraud in the elections
The Wolesi Jirga election is scheduled for October 20. The Independent Election Commission (IEC) has said more than 9 million people have so far registered as voters.
However, some political parties and processes claimed the number of voters was less compared to what announced by the IEC.
Grand National Alliance which formed of several political parties and processes, said that distribution of new paper identity cards and attachment of the voter sticker on them were highly rigged processes.
The alliance exposed thousands of fake ID cards that used by voters.
Gen. Nazifa Zaki, a representative from Kabul, said, “The fraud in the election process is organized, it is our responsibility to prevent it and not let this national process face with crisis,”
She asked the administrative board of the lower house to summon the Population Registration Department head and the IEC chief to provide information about fake ID cards and voter stickers used with them.
Mohammad Naim Lalai Hamidzai, said, “No one wants a fabricated elections if the election system not become based on biometric,”
He stressed on the demands of political parties and said an election with fraud would face Afghanistan with crisis.
