Burned ballots fuel vote woes

2006-08-04 20:03

Kinshasa - A suspicious fire at a major Kinshasa election centre during a third day of chaotic poll counting on Thursday deepened concerns about the transparency of the results of Democratic Republic of Congo's first free elections in more than 40 years.

Used and unused ballots were burned alongside other election material outside an election office that was meant to process one quarter of the capital's votes.

DRC held presidential and parliamentary elections on Sunday, hoping the vote would draw a line under the African nation's 1998-2003 war, which killed about four million people.

Voting took place amid relative calm but the days after the poll, which cost over $450m (about R3.1bn) and was protected by the United Nations' largest peacekeeping mission, have been marked by complaints and threats of challenges to the results.

At the centre in N'Djili, a popular neighbourhood in the capital, election workers said they had burned empty ballot boxes to clear up rubbish.

Something serious taking place

However, a Reuters reporter saw the remains of burned ballot papers - some used, others unused - in the ashes outside a room littered with voting material.

"It would appear that something serious has taken place.

"The key question is what is the size of the problem?"

Election officials at the office were due to process votes coming from 1 400 polling station - one quarter of Kinshasa's ballots - before passing them to compilation centres for cross checking and safekeeping in case the results are challenged.

One witness said that earlier children loaded ballots into UN trucks.

"It certainly raises concerns about the credibility and transparency of the process," said the observer. "It plays into the hands of those who question this process."

Major opposition party boycotted elections

DRC's independent election commission was not immediately available for comment.

One of DRC's former rebel groups has complained of fraud during the polls.

A major opposition party boycotted the election saying it would not be free and fair.

Observers said the voting might have gone well on the day, but the process of collecting results from about 50 000 polling stations would be time-consuming and had become chaotic.

DRC's incumbent President Joseph Kabila is a favourite to win the polls, but former rebel Jean-Pierre Bemba is challenging him.

- Reuters