The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DR Congo) opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi was yesterday named the provisional winner of a long-awaited presidential poll paving the way for the nation’s first transfer of power in 18 years.
Repeated delays in holding the election sparked deadly violence, but Tshisekedi struck a conciliatory tone after his victory, urging the public to view long-term Congolese President Joseph Kabila as a “partner of democratic change.”
Runner-up candidate Martin Fayulu denounced the interim results as an “electoral coup.”
Photo: Reuters
“These results have nothing to do with the truth at the ballot box,” Fayulu told Radio France International.
The DR Congo has been in the grip of a two-year crisis over the succession of Kabila, who last year announced he would finally step down after nearly two decades in power.
Burdened by a history of bloodshed, the nation has never had a peaceful handover of power since it gained independence from Belgium in 1960.
“Having gained ... 38.57 percent of the vote, Felix Tshisekedi is provisionally declared the elected president of the Democratic Republic of [the] Congo,” Independent National Election Commission president Corneille Nangaa said.
Shouts of joy erupted at the commission’s offices as the results were announced early yesterday morning, journalists reported.
“I pay tribute to President Joseph Kabila and today we should no longer see him as an adversary, but rather a partner in democratic change in our country,” Tshisekedi told a crowd of supporters at the headquarters of his Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) party.
The candidate Kabila handpicked to succeed him, former Congolese minister of the interior and security Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, came third in the poll with 23.8 percent of the vote.
The other main opposition candidate, former oil executive Fayulu, took 34.8 percent, official results showed.
According to the initial timetable set out by the commission, the definitive results are due on Tuesday with the swearing-in of the new president three days later.
As the lengthy results were read out on nationwide television, police were deployed at strategic spots in Kinshasa where, for the second evening running, many residents went home and locked their doors early.
Tshisekedi is the head of country’s oldest and largest opposition party the UDPS, founded by his father, Etienne.
During his campaign he promised a return to the rule of law, to fight the “gangrene” of corruption and to bring peace to the east, but his detractors say that he lacks political and managerial experience.
Kabila, 47, was due to step down two years ago, but stayed in office, sparking widespread protests that were repressed at the cost of scores of lives.
His choice of successor fueled accusations that the leader — concerned about possible retribution — would use close ally Shadary to protect his interests after the vote.
Election supervisors had faced mounting pressure at home and abroad to publish the results of the Dec. 30 poll after delays stoked fears for the nation’s stability.
However, it also coincided with an apparent overture to Kabila from opposition leaders.
Campaign groups on Wednesday told people “to be prepared to go out onto the streets in massive numbers” if the outcome failed to accurately reflect the vote.
South Africa and Zambia joined the clamor to publish the results.
“The delay in releasing the results of the elections can lead to suspicions and compromise peace and stability of the country,” South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Zambian President Edgar Lungu said in a joint statement.
In the lead-up to the results, the opposition hinted at a rapprochement.
“There’s no spirit of revenge,” Tshisekedi told Belgian newspaper Le Soir.
Kabila and Tshisekedi “have an interest in meeting to prepare a peaceful and civilized transfer of power,” UDPS secretary-general Jean-Marc Kabund said this week.
MONEY GRAB: People were rushing to collect bills scattered on the ground after the plane transporting money crashed, which an official said hindered rescue efforts A cargo plane carrying money on Friday crashed near Bolivia’s capital, damaging about a dozen vehicles on highway, scattering bills on the ground and leaving at least 15 people dead and others injured, an official said. Bolivian Minister of Defense Marcelo Salinas said the Hercules C-130 plane was transporting newly printed Bolivian currency when it “landed and veered off the runway” at an airport in El Alto, a city adjacent to La Paz, before ending up in a nearby field. Firefighters managed to put out the flames that engulfed the aircraft. Fire chief Pavel Tovar said at least 15 people died, but
LIKE FATHER, LIKE DAUGHTER: By showing Ju-ae’s ability to handle a weapon, the photos ‘suggest she is indeed receiving training as a successor,’ an academic said North Korea on Saturday released a rare image of leader Kim Jong-un’s teenage daughter firing a rifle at a shooting range, adding to speculation that she is being groomed as his successor. Kim’s daughter, Ju-ae, has long been seen as the next in line to rule the secretive, nuclear-armed state, and took part in a string of recent high-profile outings, including last week’s military parade marking the closing stages of North Korea’s key party congress. Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) released a photo of Ju-ae shooting a rifle at an outdoor shooting range, peering through a rifle scope
India and Canada yesterday reached a string of agreements, including on critical mineral cooperation and a “landmark” uranium supply deal for nuclear power, the countries’ leaders said in New Delhi. The pacts, which also covered technology and promoting the use of renewable energy, were announced after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney hailed a fresh start in the relationship between their nations. “Our ties have seen a new energy, mutual trust and positivity,” Modi said. Carney’s visit is a key step forward in ties that effectively collapsed in 2023 after Ottawa accused New Delhi
Gaza is rapidly running out of its limited fuel supply and stocks of food staples might become tight, officials said, after Israel blocked the entry of fuel and goods into the war-shattered territory, citing fighting with Iran. The Israeli military closed all Gaza border crossings on Saturday after announcing airstrikes on Iran carried out jointly with the US. Israeli authorities late on Monday night said that they would reopen the Kerem Shalom crossing from Israel to Gaza yesterday, for “gradual entry of humanitarian aid” into the strip, without saying how much. Israeli authorities previously said the crossings could not be operated safely during
RSS