US sends troops for possible 'violent' Congo vote protests

[Swordsmyth]

Opposition candidate Martin Fayulu has declared himself the winner of the Democratic Republic of the Congo's recent presidential election and announced that he will challenge the official results in the country's constitutional court, Reuters reported Jan. 11.

More at: https://worldview.stratfor.com/situa...ntial-election

[Swordsmyth]

Russia and China led calls at the United Nations Security Council on Friday for world powers to stay out of an election dispute in the Democratic Republic of Congo.Western nations and observers have questioned the outcome of the December 30 poll, in which opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi was declared the winner, with Belgium, France and the United States saying they await details from election authorities on the vote count.
The council heard competing appeals from the DR Congo's poll chief to accept the result, while the head of the Catholic bishops conference urged the top UN body to demand the release of data from polling stations to allow verification.
China and Russia made clear that the top UN body should be concerned by the stability of the DR Congo as it undertakes what is set to be the first peaceful handover of power since its independence from Belgium in 1960.
Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said "any speculation" about the vote was "unacceptable" and "liable to generate far-reaching repercussions for stability both in the DRC and the entire Great Lakes region."
China's envoy Ma Zhaoxu called for "full respect" of the authority of the CENI election commission that organized the vote and announced the outcome.
"We believe that the people of the DRC have the ability and wisdom to resolve the relevant issues in their own way," said Ma.


There are suspicions that President Joseph Kabila, in power since 2001, has entered into a deal with Tshisekedi to hand him the presidency after his hand-picked candidate came in third place.
Opposition rival Martin Fayulu, who came in a close second, has dismissed the result and announced he will challenge the outcome before the Constitutional Court.
Bishop Marcel Utembi, who heads the CENCO Catholic bishop conference, renewed his claim that the announced results are not in line with the data collected by its 40,000 observers, suggesting that Fayulu was the winner.
Utembi argued that the release of the records of vote-counting at the polling stations could "dispel doubt among the population as to the outcome and may therefore set minds at rest."
Corneille Nangaa, president of the CENI electoral commission, responded that the voting data could only be handed to the Constitutional Court in line with DR Congo legislation.
"There are only two options to address this: either to confirm the result of the CENI or to cancel the election," said Nangaa.
"Canceling the election would mean that the institutions in place would continue to remain in place because we would not have a president until new elections are organized," he added.

More at: https://news.yahoo.com/russia-china-...180305355.html

[Swordsmyth]

The Democratic Republic of the Congo's ruling coalition of outgoing President Joseph Kabila has expanded its majority in the country's National Assembly, according to newly released election results, RFI Afrique reported Jan. 13. Meanwhile, two regional blocs — the Southern African Development Community and the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region — have suggested a recount of the election results.

By gaining an absolute majority in the country's parliament, Kabila's coalition will have a stranglehold over President-elect Felix Tshisekedi, as he will not be able to nominate a prime minister without the legislature's support. Moreover, it will greatly constrain Tshisekedi's ability to implement his agenda and require him to form an alliance with Kabila's forces. Kabila's alliance will also be able to nominate a new president for the country's senate.

More at: https://worldview.stratfor.com/situa...ional-assembly

[Swordsmyth]

The South African Development Community (SADC) has called an emergency meeting for Jan. 17 in Addis Ababa to discuss the disputed presidential election in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Reuters reported Jan. 15.

More at: https://worldview.stratfor.com/situa...ntial-election

[Swordsmyth]

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has abandoned its demand for a recount in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's contentious presidential election, Bloomberg reported Jan. 17.

More at: https://worldview.stratfor.com/situa...ection-recount

[Swordsmyth]

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has rejected a call by the African Union (AU) for Kinshasa to delay the announcement of its final election results, AFP reported Jan. 18.

The election also allowed the ruling coalition of outgoing President Joseph Kabila to expand its majority in the country's National Assembly.

More at: https://worldview.stratfor.com/situa...-results-delay

[Swordsmyth]

Congo's election crisis deepened early Sunday when the Constitutional Court confirmed the win of Felix Tshisekedi, rejecting claims of fraud, and runner-up Martin Fayulu promptly declared himself the country's "only legitimate president."Fayulu's supporters have alleged an extraordinary backroom deal by outgoing President Joseph Kabila to rig the vote in favor of the opposition after the ruling party's candidate did so poorly that a Plan B was needed. Neither side has acknowledged the accusations.
The court, however, said Fayulu offered no proof to back his assertions that he had won easily based on leaked data attributed to the electoral commission.
Fayulu urged Congolese to take to the streets to peacefully protest what he called "constitutional coup d'etat," accusing the court of validating false results. "It's no secret ... that you have elected me president," he said.
Neither Congolese nor the international community should recognize Tshisekedi, nor obey him, Fayulu added.
Tshisekedi said early Sunday that the Constitutional Court's decision confirming him as the winner of the presidential election was a victory for the entire country.
"It is Congo that won," said Tshisekedi, speaking to his supporters after the court decision. "It is not the victory of one camp against another. I am engaged in a campaign to reconcile all Congolese. ... The Congo that we are going to form will not be a Congo of division, hatred or tribalism. It will be a reconciled Congo, a strong Congo that will be focused on development, peace and security."
The largely untested Tshisekedi, son of the late, charismatic opposition leader Etienne, is set to be inaugurated on Tuesday. His supporters who had gathered outside the court cheered.
"It's a shame that Mr. Fayulu wants to stay isolated," Tshisekedi's spokesman, Vidiye Tshimanga, told The Associated Press. He said the two men once had been part of an opposition coalition demanding that Kabila step down.
The new president will need everyone for the reconstruction of the country, Tshimanga said, as the Congolese people have "suffered a lot in recent years."
The court's declaration came shortly after the African Union in an unprecedented move asked Congo to delay announcing the final election results, citing "serious doubts" about the vote. It planned to send a high-level delegation on Monday to find a way out of the crisis, fearing unrest spilling across borders of the vast Central African nation.
Congo's government replied it was up to the courts.
The court turned away Fayulu's request for a recount in the Dec. 30 vote.
Government spokesman Lambert Mende quickly acknowledged the court's decision, congratulating Tshisekedi as Congo's fifth president.


The court said Tshisekedi won with more than 7 million votes, or 38 percent, and Fayulu received 34 percent. However, leaked data published by some media outlets, attributed to the electoral commission and representing 86 percent of the votes, show that Fayulu won 59 percent while Tshisekedi received 19 percent.
Fayulu, a lawmaker and businessman who is outspoken about cleaning up Congo's sprawling corruption, is widely seen as posing more of a threat to Kabila, his allies and the vast wealth they have amassed.
All of the election results, not just the presidential ones, had been widely questioned after Kabila's ruling coalition won a majority in legislative and provincial votes while its presidential candidate finished a distant third.
Congo's election had been meant to take place in late 2016, and many Congolese worried that Kabila, in power since 2001, was seeking a way to stay in office. Barred from serving three consecutive terms, Kabila already has hinted he might run again in 2023.

More at: https://news.yahoo.com/party-declare...144946478.html

[Swordsmyth]

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa congratulated Tshisekedi on Monday and in a statement "called on all parties and all stakeholders in the DRC to respect the decision of the Constitutional Court".
The presidents of Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi congratulated Tshisekedi in a series of Tweets on Sunday, echoing the Southern African Development Community (SADC) - a bloc that includes South Africa and Angola - which also called for the transition of power to remain peaceful, backing off from earlier calls for a recount.
The AU has yet to comment since it noted the court's decision. It postponed a visit by a high-level delegation to Kinshasa that had been scheduled for Monday.
Fayulu says Tshisekedi and outgoing President Joseph Kabila made a deal to cheat him out of a more than 60-percent win - an accusation they both deny.
On Monday he asked African leaders to "respect the sovereign decision of the Congolese people who elected me president".
"Last week we had seen a risk of foreign intervention, if the heads of neighboring states backed Mr Fayulu in a protracted dispute. Now that most of them have accepted Mr Tshisekedi’s win, the risk looks somewhat lower," said research firm NKC African Economics in a statement on Monday.
Police in the capital Kinshasa blocked access to the headquarters of a party in Fayulu's Lamuka coalition, where he had intended to gather supporters and protest against the confirmation of Tshisekedi's victory.
Lamuka spokeswoman Eve Bazaiba told Reuters the building had been besieged and protesters dispersed, forcing Fayulu to abandon his plans.
Some Congolese hoped Fayulu would accept defeat in the interest of peace.
"He (Fayulu) needs to let it go. Going to the Constitutional Court and all that is just creating problems and for me it's a waste of time," said Kinshasa resident Patricia Mokabi.
"We are all Congolese, we are together whether it is Felix or Fayulu, they can work together."
Belgian Foreign Affairs Minister Didier Reynders told local media he would have preferred the process to be more transparent, and the verification of results to be more open.
Western countries also initially expressed doubt about the preliminary vote count. Since Tshisekedi's victory was confirmed, their responses have been more muted than those of countries in the region.
France said on Monday it had "taken note" of Tshisekedi's victory and that it would be sending its ambassador to the swearing in ceremony. The European Union's foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, said at a press conference that the EU would take a position after meeting with the AU on Monday.
Russia's foreign ministry noted the historical importance of the electoral transfer of power: "We consider these elections a milestone in the political life of the DRC."

More at: https://news.yahoo.com/african-leade...153907244.html

[Firestarter]

The new president of the Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, was accused of an "electoral coup" by runner-up Martin Fayulu, a former oil executive, while the Catholic Church said that the result did not match election polls by its election monitors.

According to the following analysis the chance that the election results were rigged is 100%, and Fayulu was the real winner in a landslide.

https://africanarguments.org/2019/01...s-implausible/
(http://archive.is/i2CJA)


For more on how the Congo was hijacked by installing a US puppet regime in Rwanda: http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...ain-and-the-UN

[devil21]

The new president of the Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, was accused of an "electoral coup" by runner-up Martin Fayulu, a former oil executive, while the Catholic Church said that the result did not match election polls by its election monitors.

According to the following analysis the chance that the election results were rigged is 100%, and Fayulu was the real winner in a landslide.

https://africanarguments.org/2019/01...s-implausible/
(http://archive.is/i2CJA)


For more on how the Congo was hijacked by installing a US puppet regime in Rwanda: http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...ain-and-the-UN

I'm not sure I'd make the leap that the "right" candidate lost, based on those two bolded parts, just sayin...