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Slow vote count frustrates Mozambicans The majority parties, the
National Elections Committee (CNE) and the few remaining observer missions
all cancelled media briefings because, as a CNE official said, "there is
nothing to tell you." By late today unofficial
results from 1,421 polling stations had come from the Mozambique News
Agency's (AIM) network of stringers with only 17 percent of stations listed,
mostly in urban areas. There were 8,300 stations across the country for the
three days of voting last Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Results indicate a victory
for President Joaquim Chissano of Frelimo over Afonso Dhlakama, head of the
Renamo-Unity Coalition. Chissano has 557,688 votes to Dhlakama's 319,106 in
the presidential contest while Frelimo has 517,348 to Renamo's 266,172 votes.
Smaller parties appear to have been routed with virtually no votes showing
up. However, Frelimo's
strength is in urban areas and Renamo's in the rural areas but even these
unofficial results are skewed because few polling stations in Sofala, Niassa
and Cabo Delgado provinces have reported and Zambezia, where bad weather
forced an extension of the entire election, has reported too few results to
be significant. These provinces have huge voting lists and some were
pro-Renamo and some pro-Frelimo in 1994, the first multi-party elections in
Mozambique's history. The 8,300 polling stations
were to have reported to district commissions within 48 hours of the end of
voting, Sunday at 6 p.m.-- last night (Tuesday) -- and post their results
outside the stations. This has probably been done, the CNE says and district
commissions have collected the ballot boxes and official papers and forwarded
them to the 10 provincial commissions (plus Maputo city). These commissions, by law,
must report their verification of the vote by 12 December to the CNE which
must announce the final results not later than 19 December. The problem, say
many observers and monitors is the slow process and public posting of the
initial count. Few of the rural stations have phones or faxes, often no
electricity, let alone computers. Roads in some areas are almost non-existent
or virtually impassable due to wet weather, others are long distances from
semi-urban district centers and communication is extremely limited. Computers will only come
into play when the polling station results and backup documentation reaches
the provincial commissions who then recount, check for errors or fraud (as
Renamo keeps hinting) and forward their findings to Maputo which will again
verify them and factor in decisions on invalid or contested ballots. "It is far too
cumbersome a system and limits peoples' interest in the final outcome. The
enthusiasm of 75 percent of registered voters will be lost in the Christmas
festivities by the time these results are announced," said a veteran
observer of Mozambique voting from the European Union observer mission. There
were 7.1 registered voters. The day after voting
ended, virtually all regional and international observer missions, including
the SADC Electoral Commissions Forum, had hailed the campaign and voting
process as a great success. Many have already left for home. Now it will
likely be Sunday before provincial commissions report and official results
begin to be known. If the preliminary results
hold, Chissano will begin to serve his second, and last, term in office and
Renamo could start the process of its own internal analysis and reflection.
The former rebel movement has not held a party congress in five years and
critics accuse it of lacking any serious internal democratic instincts. Whatever the case within
Renamo, there are now only two political formations or parties and, if they
are to serve the needs of Mozambicans, some negotiation and co-operation will
be needed to keep the country's booming economy in tune with legislative and
constitutional needs regardless of the open hostility each of the leadership has
for the other. "Dhlakama will need
to watch his back," a former party member said, "people are working
together at the local levels and if he does worse than last time, Renamo
could well be looking at younger, better educated and more flexible leadership."
In the meantime people wonder when this second multi-party election will ever end. (SARDC) |
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[Elections '99 || Sustainable Democracy || SARDC] Mail Editorial for comments and queries. |
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