The Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan (IEC) on Thursday announced it has suspended the site operational chief of the election management body following the release of an audio tape in which the suspect allegedly asks an IEC official in a province for money. 
 
The IEC spokesman has confirmed the allegations and has called on the IEC secretariat to submit its report regarding the issue. 
 
The IEC officials have said that the telephonic conversation was allegedly made between Qalamyar, the site operational chief of the IEC and one of the provincial chiefs of the election commission in which he asked for 500,000 Afs. 
 
The audio tape is being reviewed, said the IEC secretariat chief Imam Mohammad Warimach. 
 
“In the audio tape discussions are around 500,000 Afs, 'just cash three hundred thousand of it and keep the other two hundred thousand and pay the salaries' like this or that,” said Warimach. 
 
“Whoever he is, the commission will investigate the incident, if such things happened, then he will be referred to the legal and judicial institutions,” said IEC spokesman Abdul Badee Sayyad.
 
“Corruption exists everywhere, but corruption within the commission which is a national institution could damage the trust of people and create distrust among the people about elections,” said Jandad Spinghar, head of Afghan Civil Society Election Network.
 
But, in a telephonic interview Qalamyar has rejected the allegations and said that these charges were fabricated against him. 
 
Qalamyar has been serving in his post for several years and kept his post even during the change brought to the IEC leadership.