By SEDIQ ZALIQ

More than 200 complaints have been filed with the Electoral Complaints Commission. So far the commission has not made public any findings of its investigations into the complaints.

Complaints have been filed by candidates, the Independent Election Commission, the Free and Fair Election Foundation and the public.

ECC officials say they are still investigating complaints and collecting evidence. Until their investigations are complete, no findings will be publicly released.

In an interview with the Kabul Weekly, the ECC provided general details about the nature of the complaints.

“There are complaints about 20 nominees who are still working for the government even though they were required to resign,” said ECC member Shah Sultan Hakifi. "Other complaints deal with candidates who posted campaign literature in prohibited areas. There are also complaints about misuse of government resources for campaigning.”

The majority of the latter complaints come from Kabul province.

“If the evidence shows that a nominee has not resigned from his government job, or if he is found to have misused government resources and facilities, it will result in the candidate’s disqualification,” Hakifi added. “Furthermore, if nominees don't respect the ban on campaign literature on private property and prohibited public spaces, they will be given a warning. If the violations are extensive, the candidate can be fined.”

On Sunday, a new restriction was announced banning candidates who are journalists and media owners from appearing on TV and radio except in the form of campaign commercials. 

According to Electoral Media Commission chairman Delawar Nazirzoi, the appearance of candidates who are reporters or media owners is a media violation. He warned that media workers and owners will be fined if they break the ban. He did not specify the amount of the fine.

Since the start of the campaign, media coverage and special programs have increased on electronic media oulets.

IEC spokesman Noor Mohammad Noor said that according to electoral regulations, media that violate election coverage rules will be fined at least 500 afghanis for minor infractions and larger fines will be levied for more serious violations. Media owners and editors will also be reprimanded.

The IEC declined to give Kabul Weekly exact statistics on the number of nominees who still host TV and radio programs. Dozens of nominees work as anchors or reports for stations in Kabul and elsewhere.

Earlier, 67 people were dropped from the ballot because of alleged ties to illegal armed groups. Another seven nominees were dropped because they had not resigned from their government jobs. Additionally, 54 nominees withdrew fromt he race.

According to the IEC, the final ballot will include 2,556 nominees, including 406 women. More than 12.5 million ballots will be printed in Dubai. A quarter of those ballots have been printed so far, the commission reported.

IEC Chairman Fazil Ahmad Mahnawi said the commission has given a list of the 6,800 sites to security officials. Six thousand sites have been secured already, he added.