AU, ECOWAS Observers Congratulate Guinea On Successful Presidential Election
African Union (AU) and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) observation missions have congratulated Guinea on its “peaceful, transparent and inclusive” presidential election.
At a press conference Tuesday in Conakry, the capital of Guinea, the missions hailed the political maturity of Guinean voters who fulfilled their civic duty without any violence.
The AU observer mission was headed by former prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Augustin Matata Ponyo, and the ECOWAS mission was headed by former Cape Verdean prime minister Jose Maria Neves.
ECOWAS deployed 116 observers from 17 member countries, while the AU deployed 10 teams of observers in 23 Guinean prefectures, visiting 147 polling stations, including 52 in rural areas.
“Despite the risk of confrontation and the tense political climate that prevailed in the country, the ballot took place in transparency, security, calm and serenity,” said Matata Ponyo and Jose Maria Neves.
They encouraged the population to continue to show patience and civility until the results are proclaimed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI).
They also invited the presidential candidates to respect the results of the ballot box and to resort, if necessary, to legal channels for any electoral dispute. ECOWAS will maintain long-term observers in Guinea until final results are declared.