Some of Afghanistan’s mainstream political leaders on Wednesday warned that the elections could cause more turmoil in the country, and they suggested that peace should be the top priority rather than the election.
Among the critics are former Afghan president Hamid Karzai, who in an interview with the Associated Press on Tuesday, said that the presidential elections are bound to plunge Afghanistan deeper into violence.
“We should first come to peace in Afghanistan and then conduct elections,” “We cannot conduct elections in a country that is going through a foreign-imposed conflict. We are in a war of foreign objectives and interests. It isn’t our conflict. We are only dying in it,” the AP quoted Karzai as saying.
Meanwhile, Mohammad Ismail Khan, a member of Jamiat-e-Islami party who served in high level posts in Karzai’s administration, said that the upcoming elections will not be acceptable to Afghans and will destroy unity.
Atta Mohammad Noor, the former governor of northern Balkh province also said that the elections do not have meaning until peace prevails in the country.
“Within two days, we will move towards a situation which will not be acceptable to our nation. We want to see an election that will promote unity among the people and save our country; it is available today for us,” said Khan.
“We should review it and move towards our priority, which is peace,” said Sayed Hamed Gailani, chairman of the Mahaz-e-Milli party.
“We all know that the election is a national process and a fundamental need for the Afghan people, but there is specific timing for everything,” said Atta Mohammad Noor, the former governor of Balkh.
“God forbid, if there is a crisis, the people of Afghanistan should know that a group of their brothers and sisters are fully ready to save the people and the country and they are not part of the crisis,” said former first vice president Mohammad Younus Qanooni.
The politicians also said that they are working on a peace plan and will disclose the details of the plan within the next few days.