Several Afghan Senators on Sunday expressed concerns over growing insecurity across the country and accused the government of ignoring the security threats. They pointed out that the local security officials in the provinces submit fudged reports about the security situation in their area to the central security organizations. As a result, Kabul does not get to know about the reality and proper measures are not taken.

The Senators said that with every passing day the security situation is deteriorating in several provinces across the country. They blamed the Defense and Interior Ministries for their inability to take any stringent measures in this regard. Due to their failure, the Taliban has succeeded in taking control of several districts across the country.

"The security situation is getting worse every day. The security officials, who promised to provide better security by launching operations, have not fulfilled their promises. The Defense and Interior Ministries are not concerned about the security situation. As a result, the insurgents have intensified their terror activities across the country," said Senator Mahyuddin Monsef.

The worried Senators warned the government saying that if the security situation is not taken care of as quickly as possible, then the citizens will have to face several challenges, including threat to life ahead of the elections. The Senators added that insecurity will also result in widespread electoral frauds, a thing the country cannot afford at this point of time.

"The electoral process will have to face numerous hurdles, if the security situation deteriorates further. The security forces have to chalk out proper strategy to provide better security in the country," said Senator Lailima Ahmadi.

According to the Senators, Badakhshan, Ghazni and Logar are some of the most insecure provinces in the country, where the insurgents frequently launch attacks on the security forces. The Senators claimed that the above mentioned provinces are being ruled by the Taliban.

"The security situation is getting worse. In Ghazni, only three districts out of 18 are partially secure. People live under constant fear of loss of life, and the security officials are not doing anything to fight the security challenges," said Senator Khaleq Dad Balaghi.

"The security officials of Logar province wrongly reported to the center that security is fine. The security situation of Logar is alarming. We demand that stringent security measures should be taken," said Senator Hedayatullah Ahmadzai.

Earlier on Monday, Noor Muhammad Noor, the spokesman of the Independent Election Commission (IEC), warned the Afghan government saying that if it failed to ensure security of the Commission's employees, then the IEC would be unable to hold the elections in an efficient and transparent manner.

The warning from Mr. Noor came in after five employees of the IEC, including two women were kidnapped by a group of unidentified gunmen on Thursday from Almar district in Faryab province.

In light of the issue, Mr. Noor assured the employees saying that the IEC has already discussed the matter with the security organisations and is putting in all efforts to ensure their safety.

"We want safety of the IEC employees, elections materials, voters, voters' registration centers' employees, and all the journalists who cover the elections," said Mr. Noor.

After the killing of Amanullah Aman, the chief of the IEC in Kunduz province, kidnapping of the IEC officials marks the second incident aimed at preventing the next spring's elections. The Commission cited insecurity as a major challenge in opening voters' registration centers in several provinces and holding elections in a transparent manner.
Amanullah Aman was shot dead by two unidentified gunmen in Kunduz city. The Taliban had claimed responsibility for the attack.

Security surrounding the upcoming Presidential and Provincial elections has been a major concern of government officials and the public. Most of security related issues have had to do with voter registration offices not being able to open in certain areas, and residents being too afraid to participate.