Chad voted in a general election on Sunday that the government had hailed as a key step towards ending military rule, but that was marked by low turnout and the opposition’s call for a boycott amid allegations of fraud.Voting in the landlocked country in Africa’s northern half had taken place against a backdrop of recurring attacks by the jihadist group Boko Haram in the Lake Chad region, the ending of a military accord with former colonial master France, and accusations that Chad was interfering in the conflict ravaging neighbouring Sudan.The government has presented the elections as the final stage in the transition to democracy.President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno took power in 2021 after the death of his father, who had ruled the Sahel country for three decades.The opposition had called for a boycott of the election, saying the results had been decided in advance.After polling stations closed, turnout stood at 52.37 percent, according to the ANGE national election management agency.In the capital N’Djamena, the opposition cried foul, saying numerous irregularities occurred the day before in some precincts, when soldiers had cast their ballots in line with tradition that sees the military, police and nomads vote a day before the general population.”The soldiers who came to vote yesterday (were) without a voter card or national identity card. The same person could vote twenty-five or fifty times,” said Abdelaziz Koulamallah, a candidate for a local seat with the Federal Party for Justice and Development (PFJD), in a video posted on his Facebook account.Election officials in the upmarket district where the president’s family and ruling dignitaries live earlier put the low turnout to “cold weather”.But the opposition said the low numbers were due to its call for a boycott.They “have all stayed at home following our call. That is, the overwhelming majority” have, Succes Masra, leader of the opposition Transformers party, told AFP.The boycott leaves the field open for candidates aligned with the president, who was brought to power by the military in 2021 and then legitimised in a presidential election in May that opposition candidates denounced as fraudulent. “I urge all my compatriots on the electoral roll to come out and vote en masse,” Deby posted on Facebook, alongside photos of himself casting his ballot on what he called a “historic day”.- ‘Pointless’ -On Saturday, Masra had said: “The fabricated results are already in the computers.” Herve Natouingan, 28, a construction worker turned motorbike taxi driver due to a lack of job prospects, said it was “pointless” to cast a ballot because “there’s no real voting in Chad”. Patrice Lumumba Deoumoundou, an unemployed 39-year-old, told AFP he had voted on Sunday morning in the hope of “change across the board” — more jobs, fewer price rises, “more justice” and “more equality”.Chad’s election management agency said there had been “record” turnout during the early voting on Saturday, with more than 72 percent in the army and 54 percent among nomads.”There is a lot at stake locally in these elections,” it said.”The nomads came to ask the people who will be elected tomorrow to improve their living conditions,” said sheikh Djibrine Hassabakarim, one of the community’s representatives.He said climate change had made life hard for his community, killing livestock, triggering clashes with sedentary farmers and making it hard for them to feed their families.- Transition to democracy -Polling stations were monitored by around 100 foreign election observers and representatives of political parties.On Saturday evening, the opposition Democratic Party of the Chadian People (PDPT) said more than a thousand ballots intended for the sub-prefecture of Bongor had disappeared.It called for “vigilance” to “thwart the fraud networks” it said had been set up by the ruling MPS party.
Sun, 29 Dec 2024 21:26:48 GMT
