OPPOSITION CRIES FOUL AS CONGO READIES FOR VOTE Accusations already flying about electoral legitimacy
As the Democratic Republic of Congo gears up for Dec. 20 elections, the opposition and independent observers warn that issues including illegible voter cards, blocked campaign planes, and electoral list delays threaten the legitimacy of the results.
For months, the CENI election commission has rejected criticism it is failing to deliver a free and fair vote as promised, even as it flags logistical setbacks rolling out the presidential and legislative ballot across Africa’s second-largest country.
Tensions have escalated in the final weeks of campaigning. Challengers to President Felix Tshisekedi have cried foul over an allegedly uneven playing field and doubled down on accusations the authorities plan to tip the election in their favour including through voter roll chicanery. The CENI and presidency deny this.
As seasonal rains make Congo’s largely unpaved road network impassable, other opposition contenders have alleged efforts to suppress campaigns and logistical hurdles to reaching voters, which they say contravene the electoral law requiring all candidates have an equal footing in the race.
Such issues are particularly fraught in Congo, which only saw its first handover of presidential power in 59 years of independence in 2019 albeit after a poll tarnished by allegations of fraud and unrest.
The president, whose campaign slogan is ‘Unity, Security, Prosperity’, has pitched himself to the 44 million voters as the least disruptive choice for a country battling myriad eastern rebel groups and entrenched poverty.
His administration has vowed to support CENI efforts to deliver the election as promised, but long-running controversies over voter lists and ID cards have already thrown the credibility of the vote into doubt, say the opposition as well as independent religious and civil society observers.
Six candidates, including Tshisekedi’s main rivals, joined forces in October to demand several urgent measures to prevent potential fraud.
At stake is not just the legitimacy of the next administration, but also wider stability, as disputes over perceived electoral shenanigans often spark violent unrest in Congo.
