Well done IOG
President Guelleh wins Djibouti poll
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DJIBOUTI — Results from presidential elections in the tiny Horn of Africa nation of Djibouti – third since 1994 reconciliation – show a massive win for incumbent President, Ismail Omar Guelleh.
The head of the electoral commission Assoweh Idris Assoweh announced on Saturday morning (4 AM East Africa Time) that Mr Guelleh received over 72 per cent of the poll to defeat Mohamed Warsama Ragueh, an independent challenger and former Constitutional Council chairman. During a press conference held in the capital Djibouti, the results were reconfirmed by Djibouti’s home Affairs Minister, Yassin Elmi Bouh. He said the ruling People’s Rally for Progress (RPP) party has crushed the only opposition challenger, who received just 28 per cent of the vote. He added 69 per cent of the registered voters casted their votes.
More than 150,000 people have registered to vote but the country’s prominent opposition parties — the Union for Democratic Change (UAD) and the Union of Democratic Movements (UMD) — have all boycotted the poll after they accused the government of lack of freedom and intermediation. This also sparked an outcry from human right groups. “As elections in Djibouti approach, the government has trampled on those very rights that make a vote free and fair,” said Rona Peligal Deputy Africa Director for Human Rights Watch. “Peaceful protests elsewhere in the region are no justification for the government to deny citizens their basic rights.”
This will be Mr Guelleh’s third term in office even though the constitution before its reform by lawmakers in 2009 allowed only two terms in office. Djibouti has been ruled by Omar Guelleh’s family since independence from France in 1977. During the campaign, Mr Guelleh promised reforms and to resolve the country’s water and energy shortages.
Mr Assoweh said he will announce the full result later today (Saturday afternoon/East Africa Time). The international community is watching the polls in the small strategic nation, but it is unclear if they will welcome the results.
Djibouti, a former French colony lies between Eritrea and Somaliland and is home to France’s largest military base in Africa. It also hosts a major U.S. base and foreign navies patrolling the shipping lanes off the coast of Somalia to combat piracy.
Somalilandpress | 8 April 2011
