Kandahar governor urges Afghans to vote
Taliban maintain vow to disrupt election
The Afghan-Canadian governor of Kandahar urged people to vote on Wednesday as insurgent activity continued to reverberate in the Afghan capital.
"The security is restored. All the highways are open. All the roads are open. The police, the army and the people are in charge of the security, so there is nothing to be worried about," Tooryalai Wesa said at a news conference.
Wesa, who lived in Coquitlam, B.C., for 13 years, said people are not listening to those who are warning against going to school or opening their shops as the country prepares for its second democratic presidential election.
"You can see that offices are running, the schools are running, the shops are running. Everybody is in town," Wesa said. "They can say whatever they want, but people can see the security."
His comments come as armed men took over a branch of the Pashtani Bank early Wednesday in the Jadi Maiwand area of Kabul.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the incident, which is the third major attack to rock the capital in recent days. The Taliban have vowed to disrupt Thursday's election and have told voters they risk being caught in an attack if they go to cast ballots.
Canadian Brig.-Gen. Eric Tremblay, a spokesman for the NATO-led force, said insurgent attacks have increased leading into the election and now average 48 attacks a day.
'Security is more important'
Abdul Jalal, a shopkeeper near where Wednesday's gunfire occurred, told The Associated Press if there isn't calm on Thursday, his family will not vote.
"If it was like today, we will not vote," Jalal said. "Elections are a good thing for Afghanistan but security is more important."
A Taliban website claimed Wednesday at least 20 suicide bombers are imbedded in the capital and militants are closing in on roads across the country.
"From today onwards until the end of tomorrow, all main and secondary roads will be blocked for traffic and the [Taliban] will bear no responsibility for whoever gets hurt," the site said.
The Foreign Ministry issued a statement Tuesday asking news organizations to avoid reporting election day violence "to ensure the wide participation of the Afghan people."
Officials believe a strong turnout is essential for the new Afghan president to have legitimacy to tackle the challenges facing the nation, including the insurgency, political divisions, ethnic tension, unemployment and corruption.
Voting stations not ready
Afghanistan's chief electoral officer, Daoud Ali Najafi, told The Associated Press about 20 per cent of the election materials have not yet been delivered to polling stations because of continued insecurity and mounting tension.
International election observers have also only reached about 70 per cent of the polling stations.
Meanwhile, there were reports at least six poll workers have died in various parts of the country in a series of roadside bombings.
About one-third of Afghanistan is under high risk of militant attack on election day, according to Interior Ministry, and no polling stations will be operating in eight districts that are under militant control.
But Tremblay said it would be very hard for the Taliban to attack even one per cent of the polling stations on Thursday. "We're confident that the systems in place will lead to a successful election," Tremblay said.
NATO announced Tuesday it will stop its offensive operations on Thursday to focus on maintaining security for the vote.
In advance of the vote, the U.S. military announced the deaths of six more Americans, putting August on pace to become the deadliest month since U.S. forces began fighting there in 2001. So far this month, 32 U.S. troops have died. In July, 44 U.S. military personnel died, the deadliest month on record.
The impact of the Taliban threats will likely be most visible in the voter turnout in rural areas where there will be a smaller security presence, Tremblay said.
There are 41 presidential candidates and more than 3,000 people running for provincial council seats, according to the United Nations.
A candidate needs 50 per cent of the vote to avoid going to a run-off election for the top two finishers.
A U.S. government-funded poll released last week suggests Afghan President Hamid Karzai is leading with 36 per cent of the vote, followed by former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah with 20 per cent.
Results expected Saturday
Preliminary results from the vote are expected on Saturday night.
"The acceptance of the results from the top candidates and their supporters is absolutely vital," Dan McNorton, a spokesman for the United Nations mission in Afghanistan, told Reuters.
Officials have also focused on maintaining the integrity of the election results in the eyes of the majority of the Afghan community.
Grant Kippen, a Canadian who is serving as head of the Afghan election complaints commission, said efforts are being made to ward against voters casting multiple ballots or presenting fake voter registration cards.
With files from The Associated Press