(5 minutes read)
· The Republic of Congo will go to the polls in a few weeks time to elect a new president
· While the process is in progress for the March 21 election, the people of the Central African country are concerned about their job and deteriorating living conditions, which were further exacerbated by the pandemic. Mounting unemployment has a direct link
with the crime rates in the country
· Only 10% of the villages are electrified. In mid February, President Denis Sassou Nguesso launched the Djambala-Lekana power line, to ensure more access to power
The Republic of Congo will go to the polls in a few weeks time to elect a new president. While the process is in progress for the March 21 election, the people of the Central African country are concerned about their job and deteriorating living conditions, which were further exacerbated by the pandemic. Mounting unemployment has a direct link with the crime rates in the country.
Reports, however, indicate that the election fever has not permeated to the grassroots since the ordinary persons are more concerned about how they would make both ends meet. In the market places people are engaged in their respective occupations. Hardly is there any place one can see people are talking about the elections, their charter of demands, their preferred candidate or even what they would want the new dispensation to address on a priority basis.
There are many issues that compete to get engagement of the administration. Apart from unemployment, which forces the women folks to work harder since their husbands are mostly unemployed to keep the family away from extreme poverty, many feel electricity accessibility is a big issue. Only 10% of the villages are electrified. In mid February, President Denis Sassou Nguesso launched the Djambala-Lekana power line, to ensure more access to power.
Like some of the heads of states in the continent, Dennis Sassou (77) has ruled Congo for 36 years. Pollsters say that he has a good chance of getting re-elected since there is no powerful opposition candidate to challenge him. However, there are stray voices that are aired about his continuation in the office of the president despite being at that job for 36 years and at an advanced age. In 2015, the country held are ferendum to remove the 70 year age limit and two terms for the president. That paved the way for Sassou Nguesso securing a third
term in elections in March 2016, although it sparked widespread protests and bloodshed. President Nguesso’s rivals in 2016, former general Jean-Marie Michel Mokoko and former minister Andre Okombi Salissa are still cooling their heels in the jail. The reason for their arrests was they disputed the election. They were arrested, put on trial and sentenced for 20 years of imprisonment.
