By RFIPosted on 28-12-2019Changed on 28-12-2019 at 21:56

Bissau-Guinean voters are called to the polls this Sunday, December 29, for the second round of the presidential election. The election promises to be close between Domingos Simoes Pereira, of the historic PAIGC party, and Umaro Sissoco Embalo, of the Madem G15 party which garnered support.

Some 760,000 registered voters have to decide between two candidates who are in complete opposition: Domingos Simoes Pereira, from the PAIGC, a historic party, which won 40.13% of the votes in the first round . And Umaro Sissoco Embalo, of the Madem G15 party, came far behind with 27.65% of the vote. But he has since received heavy support. The stake is therefore mainly the transfer of votes, as well as the vote of the 25% of voters who abstained in the first round.

On paper, Domingos Simoes Pereira leaves with a head start. More than 40% of the votes, a party established all over the country, a well-established electoral machine but the PAIGC lost ground, especially in the east of the country, in Bafata and Gabu.

Umaro Sissoco Embalo puts forward mathematical logic, with the support of the main unsuccessful candidates in the first round. He counts in particular on the votes of outgoing president José Mario Vaz , who came 4th with some 12% of the vote. And that of Nuno Nabiam who had collected just over 13%. But the leadership of his party denounced a unilateral decision, and refused to follow the voting instructions.

Turn the page

The games are therefore open for this election which should make it possible to turn the page on chronic instability in this country shaken by the crises since independence. The ballot almost failed to take place, following the dismissal of the Prime Minister by the president a few weeks before the first round. Yet another crisis on a long list.

But for many analysts, the basic problem remains the Constitution: the lack of clarity in the distribution of powers between the Head of State and Prime Minister, from the majority in Parliament, today dominated by the PAIGC.

Observation missions

Several observation missions are deployed to monitor the process. A civil society cell dispatched 400 “monitors” to the field. She draws a satisfactory balance sheet from the campaign , and says she is confident for the second round ballot.

" The campaign took place relatively peacefully despite some incidents between supporters of the various candidates, " said Isaac Kabu, coordinator of Wanep, the West African network for peacebuilding. He thinks that the Bissau-Guineans "are going to vote en masse " this Sunday.

If the observers of the civil society had welcomed the good progress of the first round, they asked for some improvements for the second. Particularly concern the problem of indelible ink that did not work. " The president of the national commission has given us the guarantee that all the arrangements have been made " so that it does not happen again, explains Isaac Kabu.

Civil society has also called for vigilance regarding fake news, especially on Facebook. " People must be able to mature to analyze everything that is reported on social networks, " said the Wanep coordinator.

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