Ghazni Deputy Governor Mohammad Ali Ahmadi on Monday raised concerns about a number of candidates from his province who were approved by election officials yet are affiliated with Taliban insurgents.
His comments come after the Independent Election Commission's (IEC) release of the final list of eligible candidates for the spring Provincial Council elections last week.
Ali Ahmadi said that, "On one hand Mullah Mohammad Omar sends his candidates to go and run in the election but on the other hand he says that the election is only a foreigners' political game," Ahmadi said referring to the elusive man thought to be the leader of the Afghan Taliban. "Gulbudin Hikmatyar is also sending his representatives," he added regarding the founder of Hezb-e-Islami, another anti-government group.
Ahmadi declined to provide any specific names of candidates from Ghazni associated with the militants.
Earlier this year, Mullah Omar denounced the elections as a "waste of time" and there have been multiple incidents of violence against election officials that the Taliban has claimed responsibility for.
Security for the upcoming elections is a top priority, and anxiety, for Afghan officials. Many of them fear threats at the polls could repel voters from participating, and in turn, undermine the credibility of the elections.
Ahmadi's remarks come as the first time an Afghan official has claimed the Taliban is directly involved in the elections. Though previously President Hamid Karzai called on the insurgents to lay down their weapons and engage the political process.
Ahmadi was optimistic was optimisitc about voter participation in the upcoming elections, which over three million Afghans have been registered to vote in this year. He said a good election cycle could mean all the difference in terms of the country's stability and prosperity in the coming years.
"The election is the people's moment, and the more public participation, the more legitimate the election will be," he said.
With the NATO coalition withdrawing at the end of next year, and President Karzai stepping down, the April elections will come at a pivotal time for Afghanistan.
With a history of voter fraud and other improprities in past Afghan elections, especially the Presidential vote in 2009, many fear the upcoming elections will be similarly marred in illegitimacy. However, election officials have maintained that a high voter turnout would ensure credibility.
The IEC announced the final list of contenders after over a month of evaluations and assessments by the IEC and the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC). The final list contained a number of changes from the preliminary list released back in October, accounting for the findings of the ECC during its review of complaints against candidates and challenges from contenders who were previously disqualified by the IEC.
After 17 Presidential hopefuls who were cut from the preliminary list by the IEC last month filed challenges to the ECC, only one – Daoud Sultanzoy – was readmitted into the race. His addition brings the number of Presidential candidates for the April vote up from 10 to 11.
The number of Provincial Council candidates totaled 2,713.