The Independent Election Commission (IEC) on Sunday announced that the election management body has fired seven staff members, including the head of its Kabul office, following complaints against them over mismanagement.

Those suspended include Awalaurrahman Roadwal, head of the IEC’s operations for Kabul and his six colleagues.

“The head of the commission’s site office has been fired from the job along with six of his colleagues and he has been replaced by a powerful caretaker manager who previously served in Mazar,” said Zabiullah Sadat, IEC deputy spokesman.

This comes close on the heels of the IEC’s recent announcement that it is recounting all votes for Kabul, and for eleven other provinces.  

But election watchdogs and observers have been rallying for the recount of votes in the presence of election observers.

“When candidates feel that the commission is determined to recount votes, it a good sign,” said FEFA chief Yousuf Rashid.

Referring to the delay in announcing the schedule for presidential elections next year, the IEC said the commission will announce the presidential election calendar once issues around district council elections and Ghazni parliamentary elections are settled.

“The commission should give an exact date, we are prepared to provide funding and security for whatever they need,” said Omid Maisam, deputy spokesman for the CEO Abdullah Abdullah.

The IEC has completed the process of transferring voter data from biometric identification devices to its main servers.

The transfer of data from 27 provinces to our main severs has been completed, said the IEC.