(4 minutes read)
· Central African Republic (CAR) President Faustin Archange Touadéra has been re-elected in the first round of the presidential vote with more than 53% of votes in the first round itself
· Rebel groups had tried to disrupt the polls
· The main trigger for the disruptions in the country was banning former President Francois Bozize from running for the post of president by the constitutional court
Central African Republic (CAR) President Faustin Archange Touadéra has been re-elected in the first round of the presidential vote with more than 53% of votes in the first round itself. The provisional results of the election held on December 27, was announced yesterday by the National Election Authority (ANE) in the capital, Bangui. The results have to be validated by the Constitutional Court of the country. Candidates who lost the election can file an appeal against the outcome of the poll if they feel that the results are vitiated by external factors.
The Central African country has undergone a lot of problems since the elections were announced. Rebel groups had tried to disrupt the polls. The main trigger for the disruptions in the country was banning former President Francois Bozize from running for the post of president by the constitutional court. There is an allegation that he was behind letting loose violence and unrest, which gripped the country for couple of months.
The National election commission said that half of the country’s electorate ((910,000 people), had registered to vote and turnout was 76.3%. A coalition group was clamoring for cancellation of the poll on the plea that third of voters were unable to cast their ballot because of insecurity on account of violence and other factors like covid-19 pandemic. There was also an allegation from some of the opposition parties that the presidential and legislative elections were not fair and inclusive and were manipulated. They claim that there was a widespread ballot stuffing taking advantage of lack of election observers in some areas.
In the meantime, an investigation was opened into the role Bozize played in creating violence and indulging in the acts of destabilization and rebellion. He was also accused of staging an attempted coup as a coalition of rebels marched on Bangui. However, the former president denied the charges and asserted that he was framed.
