GHANZNI - According to Independent Election Commission (IEC) representatives, foreign and local security officials in Ghazni Province, of the total 394 polling stations in the province, nearly 170 currently face moderate to serious security threats.
The news comes after the IEC received a report last week from the Ministry of Interior (MoI) confidently predicting that over 90 percent of all voting polling centers around the country - over 6,800 of them - would be open on the April 5 election day despite current security concerns.
The local Afghan security officials, who spoke with IEC and international security personnel at a election prep coordination meeting, assured that appropriate security measures would be pursued to ensure the threats were addressed.
Among the 168 centers facing threats, officials said 10 of them alone were in the Nawah district, which was said to be effectively controlled by the Taliban.
"More than 150 polling stations are under serious security threats and we want to conduct operations in the vulnerable areas to eliminate the threats," Afghan National Army (ANA) 3rd Brigade Commander Haidar Nekpai said. "Operations will continue until the election day."
Some 2,000 security personnel are expected to be assigned to provide security to the polling centers.
The IEC spoke about efforts to make the remaining voter registration process - continuing through just before election day - in Ghazni easier in such a way that could also make residents looking to register feel more comfortable doing so.
"We are aware that voter registration centers are few and people wait for hours for their turn, so on the recommendation of the central office, we have established two separate voter registration centers for men and women," Ghazni IEC office head Shah Jahan Sardari said.
Sardari added that since the beginning of the voter registration process back in the late spring of 2013 more than 100,000 voter cards have been distributed to eligible voters in the province.
Previously, Ghazni Deputy Governor Mohammad Ali Ahmadi raised concerns about a number of candidates from his province who were approved by election officials to run in the Provincial Council race yet he maintained were affiliated with insurgents.
Ahmadi declined to provide any specific names of candidates from Ghazni associated with the militants, but he was vocal in criticizing the IEC for overlooking their associations.
Afghanistan prepares to conduct the historic Presidential and Provincial Council elections within 73 days, but security remains a key issue. Many are afraid insecurity in April could lead to a low voter turnout, or open the door to fraud and manipulation.
Security officials have continuously assured the IEC and the public, however, that precautions are being made and the elections should go smoothly, as planned. (Tolonews)