I was working for National Democratic Institute (NDI), one of the many Election Observation Organizations in Afghanistan as an Election Observer in the 2009 Presidential Elections. Funny thing about it is that the Afghan Government here now calls itself a Democracy, in no other Democratic country in the entire world have I ever heard that there is 41 Presidential Candidates.
If that is not enough you got Candidates that are not known for anything but being cruel commanders of the war in Afghanistan before the International Community set foot on this so called land of the BRAVE, than instead of being listed as war criminals because they killed so many people in this Country, they can Elect themselves to run her again.
You got Uneducated Candidates that cannot even write and wants to be the next President of Afghanistan. I know what you are thinking; you are thinking that this country does not have better people than that Elected or the ones you see. That is not the case, people who really can run this country, do care for the future of Afghanistan and it's People is being put down by the same power hungry warlords that ran this country before. I hear those Warlords stating that “we defended Afghanistan while you fleeted and left the country”. We fleeted because we had no choice; you were killing each other left and right in the name of Faith, Islam and what you called the Holy war. I mean really, what was holy about it? 97 percent of the Afghan Population is Muslims, were Muslims in the time of the war, but everybody that died in the Battlefield fought for god’s purpose, for Islam and went to heaven because they were killed by non-Muslims. The only time they fought the non-Muslims in this country was when Russians were here, even then the weapons and the money for the war came from America. Let’s say it was holy war when Russians invaded Afghanistan, but what happened when they Fleeted? The so called brave leaders of the war started fighting with each other to gain power because they could not stand the OTHER GUY. Millions of people were killed for the Warlords benefit. Almost all the Warlords you face today and every Afghans blames the war on other Countries, but who was pulling the trigger? There is so much more to say here, but that is to be left for another time.
The Parliamentary Elections are coming up and that is what this post is about. It is not so different then the Presidential Elections really, other then there is a lot more Candidates. The one Example of it is Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. Kabul has more than 600 candidates for the less than 40 seats, that is over 15 people running for 1 seat.
From candidates who were imprisoned by their own leader in the time of Jihad because they could not get it straight to Candidates that look more like they are advertizing for a beauty contest rather than an Election to retired Police Officer (who does not know what the Police in Afghanistan stand for?!) to Television show hosts, you name it we got it.
I won’t deny that there are people or Candidates amongst these that want to work for the better future of Afghanistan, but the list of those are too short in comparison. It is like throwing a needle into a hay stack.
If we are not talking about their personality or lack of it, we are talking about what they can bring to the table.
It is long known that any promise made to the Afghan people will be broken once the Candidate wins. Not that the Parliament in Afghanistan has had noticeable effect on anything in this country in the last 9 years anyway, but who has? All they will/do think about is how they can pocket AID money that comes in to Afghanistan after they win, how to build the nicest villas in the most expensive neighborhoods of Afghanistan and of course all that you can learn about tricking and stealing off of AID money that is hauled in here from all over the world to be used for Redevelopment.
Who can the poor people of this country trust and vote for that will not put them down or forget about them after he/she is elected?
I am not the happy gun-goon that is telling the Afghan people to pick up weapons and start killing because we cannot get it right, but “think” of a solution that will affect everybody in a good way. Do not vote for Tribe, Race, and money. Vote for the guy who can at least try to help Afghanistan get out of this mess. There are 600 candidates in Kabul and maybe more than 6000 in the entire Afghanistan, but there is at least 1 in every province that will do some amount of good for the people and not for himself. For once in your life, leave your little world and get out there, choose wisely, choose the apple because of the taste result you get not the color it comes with.
For once, lets not follow, lets not listen to his tiring monolog or Slogans, or vote for the Warlord that did nothing but destroy this country and is the reason Afghanistan is in this Situation but vote to/for a better future and the one who can at least try to bring it.
In the end, it is us that matters and that will change the face of Tomorrow by making a Decision, if we make the Decision not to Follow the Criminals of yesterday then they have no choice but to give up.
I hear that your vote may not matter that there will be cheating and/or Election Fraud, but as i said in my other post, it Starts with one "you". you trying to make a difference matters. don't just sit there and watch everything, but be a part of it.
Mohammad Jawad (JD)
July, 2010
