The presidential election is just few weeks away in Afghanistan and there are many hopes that are attached to it. There is no doubt in the fact that it is going to play a tremendous role in deciding the future state of political affairs in the country. It would be the third election after the downfall of Taliban and would be very decisive as well, as Afghanistan is going through a transition period and the international troops are in the process of withdrawal which will be completed by the end of the ongoing year. This election is also important in the sense that for the security responsibilities of the elections, the Afghan security forces are in the lead.

There are certain analysts who believe that the ongoing transition period and the withdrawal of international troops from Afghanistan would result in disorder and conflicts in the country and may even give rise to a civil war as happened after the withdrawal of USSR from the country. They basically argue that the Afghan political systems and security mechanism are not mature enough to function on their own and would face severe challenges that would not be easily shouldered and the circumstances may lead to chaos. They also fear that there may be resurgence of Taliban and they would be able to have ample control within the country and may even start an armed movement to regain power.

Though there is not complete possibility of such a scenario, I do believe that there would be myriads of challenges in the times to come for Afghanistan, Afghan authorities and Afghan people. There may be even instability and the security situation may even deteriorate to a certain extent, but the situation may not get so worse that it would result in a civil war. Still, the most important factor is the ability of Afghan authorities and people to understand the scenario properly and take measures to control the situation and fulfill the growing necessities of time. If they are unable to respond to the challenges that are raised by the circumstances, they would really face chaos and instability.

The April election is the starting point. Based on a successful election, Afghanistan can further strive to strengthen its political system and continue its march towards a better democratic country. However, for an election to be successful there are certain requirements; the most basic of which is that the election should be free, fair and transparent. Though there have been many assurances by the government and Election Commission that the coming election would be really transparent; the practical measures are really required to back such verbal assurances.

On Saturday, March 15, President Hamid Karzai promised a transparent election. He said, "We will use all our resources to ensure the elections are free, fair and transparent. Our forces will provide a secure environment for the people to take part in the process." However, he also mentioned that such an election would only be possible if there isn’t any foreign interference. “The elections could be transparent only if foreigners avoid meddling in the process. I once again remind foreigners any interference in the polls would have bad consequences,” the President said.

It is true that any sort of foreign interference would definitely spoil the outcome of the election and election then can’t be termed as free; however, it should also be kept in consideration that interference from Afghan government or authorities would also spoil the elections. Therefore, efforts should also be made to discourage such endeavors and make election truly free, fair and transparent.

It is a crystal clear fact that Afghan political system needs extra care, concentration and honest efforts for its improvement. So, the Afghan authorities, especially the Afghan President himself must strive to strengthen the pillars of democracy in the country and make all the possible efforts to hold a historical and exemplary election in 2014.

On the other hand, Western allies must put pressure and provide assistant so that the 2014 election must be held on time and must not have the drawbacks that were present in 2009 Presidential elections. It must be made sure that improvements are brought in the polling systems that can help the people of Afghanistan participate without complications in the elections and have their true representatives in parliament.

The last presidential and parliamentary elections were vehemently dominated by corruption and insecurity. The government that was formed as a result of the election was not in accordance to the will of the majority of the people. Most of the people because of the security concerns and many other problems could not even cast their votes. Moreover, the election fraud and misuse of power to influence voters also played dominant role in forming the government not fully favored by the people.

The proper and well-developed election process can play an important role in creating accountable government. A political party or a politician in order to be elected by the votes of the people tries to perform properly so that it gets chance of remaining in authority for a longer period of time. If the political parties and the contestants in the elections come to know that they can win the election even without the consent of the people, through illegal ways, they will never remain accountable to the people and would not care much about the public opinion. Afghan political scenario, at the moment, is facing almost a similar sort of situation.