Voting in the April elections may again be along linguistic, tribal, religious and zonal lines, say observers.
Knowing this presidential candidates have chosen running mates who are their tribal and sectarian allies.
Knowing this presidential candidates have chosen running mates who are their tribal and sectarian allies.
Azizullah Rafiyee who heads Afghanistan Civil Society Union points out that political leadership has stayed in the hands of a few individuals. “Some have used tribal loyalties in their personal activities and have sheltered their tribe. But the Afghan people should vote based on merit and efficiency not based on nationalism,” he appeals.
Clan loyalties were the main criteria for voters in the selection of presidents in past elections.
Saboor Nezami a student of law in Mazar-e-Sharif says, “Selection of vice-presidents can be a step towards national unity but I wish this would have been based on merit not for collecting the votes in a tribal manner.” Reza Parsa, a Kabul-based journalist echoes his view, and adds, “Candidates in the fray may be fighting each other but their candidature is on tribal calculations not on the basis of their achievements.”
Political observers say voting along tribal lines does not strengthen democracy. Nasiri, a civil society activist in Jalalabad, comments, “Considering the current situation, most people would vote based on tribal, zonal, linguistic and religious inclinations. Only a few people would be looking at the programmes and merit of the candidate.”
The lack of tolerance in society is a cause for concern in the run up to the polls. Candidates believe in the election process only if they win. A defeat in the polls could be challenged as electoral fraud.
Political analyst Asef Ashna fears the outcome of the poll may be “risky” for the country. “There are candidates who don’t have the capacity to accept success of others. This itself can push Afghanistan to crisis,” he says. “There are candidates that don’t believe in democracy and the Constitution. It is risky,” he warns.
Mohammad Aref Daneshyar, a rights activist in Bamiyan, observes “merit is unfortunately not a consideration when we think of election candidates and running mates. Most of the teams have been formed on partisan, tribal, linguistic and zonal lines.”
Literacy and awareness
Lack of political awareness and low levels of literacy are serious obstacles to building a democratic culture. There are areas of the country where voters are not familiar with the process of voting.
Dr Abas Abas is a resident of Jaghoori in Ghazni. He says, “The people don’t know how to vote in some areas as they are unaware. This itself prepares the ground for the abuse of votes as it has been clearly seen in many areas.”
Also with votes cast along tribal and zonal lines the choice is already made.
Some observers think there is media bias in election coverage. Media and also some civil society institutions favour some candidates, and work in their favour. The April presidential elections are going to see an elected president hand over power to his successor. President Hamid Karzai is barred under the Constitution from running for a third term.
Afghanistan has not experienced a peaceful transition of power. Some candidates have already said they would not accept the verdict in case of fraud. Are they saying they will only accept a verdict in which they are the winners?
Political observers are not surprised candidates have not presented plans for the future. Voters have no idea how candidates plan to deal with important issues.
An informal survey conducted by Killid in 10 provinces reveals an impressive 97 percent intend to exercise their franchise. Voters are serious about electing a new president.
