Final results from elections held in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) will be known by 31 August and the inauguration of the president-elect is set for 10 September, if there is a clear winner from the first round of voting.

However, the swearing in of the president-elect could be postponed until December, if an outright winner does not emerge from the 30 July polls, resulting in a second round of voting expected to take place in October.

According to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) – a statutory body responsible for managing the DRC's electoral process – preliminary poll results for the presidential and parliamentary elections should be available by 20 August.

IEC chairperson, Apollinaire Malu Malu, said the final tally will be announced by the country's Supreme Court before the end of August.

Under the DRC's electoral law, a presidential elections run-off might be necessary in the event that no candidate garners enough votes to secure an outright victory in the first round of voting.

The president-elect must capture more than 50 percent of the votes to avoid a second round of polls against his/her closest rivals.

The inauguration ceremony will be moved to 10 December in the event that a second round is held.

Malu Malu noted that the management of the electoral process went according to plan, although there were minor incidents of violence in the final days of campaigning.

South African President Thabo Mbeki described the electoral process as smooth and said that South Africa was looking forward to the outcome of the polls in the DRC.

South Africa was instrumental in making the DRC elections a success by providing material and logistical support in the run-up to the polls. It contributed material for printing the ballot papers and assisted in the distribution of voting papers to 14 hubs across the country.

The South Africans also assisted with about 300 technicians who helped in setting up information technology requirements.

Together with United Nations peacekeepers, South African defence forces have been operating in the DRC for some time now to ensure peace and stability in that country. Several members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) have also been deployed there.

President Joseph Kabila was the front-runner in a field of 33 presidential candidates who contested the DRC's first democratic elections since independence from Belgium in 1960.

There were also more than 9,700 candidates for the 500 legislative seats that were being contested.

The DRC elections have political and economic significance to the Southern African Development Community (SADC), a region to which the country is a member.

Peace and stability in the Congo has the potential of boosting the performance of the 14-member SADC grouping. The country has one of the world's largest diamond, copper and cobalt deposits.

It also has vast untapped agricultural capacity, with potential to become the next food-basket of Africa.

President Mbeki said the elections were a decisive moment in the modern history of the DRC and Africa and a major step on the road to reconciliation, reconstruction and development.

(sardc.net)

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