Report

Comoros: Despite accusations of fraud, AU observers say presidential election is transparent

In the Comoros, while the results of the 2024 presidential election are awaited, the election observation missions of the International Organization of La Francophonie, the East African Standby Force and the African Union (AU), delivered their conclusions on the conduct of the January 14 poll, on January 16 in Moroni. Details.

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From left to right: Laurent Kavakure (OIF), Domitien Ndayizeye (UA) and Bernard Makuza (EASF), during their press conference on the conduct of the presidential election in Comoros, on January 16, 2024 in Moroni © David Baché/RFI

By: David Baché

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With our special correspondent,

In the Comoros, the results of the presidential election on January 14, 2024 are expected to be released on Tuesday. This is the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) that specifies this, after the expected reports from the islands of Anjouan and Mohéli were finally able to be sent to the capital, Moroni, this morning. No details were given at midday on the time of this announcement, as the operations to compile the results were still in progress.

But international observer missions did not wait to communicate. At a joint press conference this morning, the OIF (International Organisation of La Francophonie), the East African Standby Force and the African Union (AU) presented their conclusions. The AU, of which Azali Assoumani, who is running for re-election as head of the Comoros, is the current chairman until next month.

Despite accusations of "massive fraud" by the five opposition candidates, observers believe that the presidential election was "generally conducted in a free and transparent manner".

An election "in peace" and "without major incidents"

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They noted problems with the delivery of election materials, significant delays in the opening of polling stations or missing names from the voters' lists. But for the international observers deployed in the Comoros, the election took place "peacefully" and "without major incidents".

On the question of proxies, observers say that all candidates were "well represented most of the time" in the polling stations.

Read alsoPresidential election in the Comoros: the election marked by a number of dysfunctions

The five opposition candidates accuse the government of having organised "ballot box stuffing". Comorians have all seen the dozens of videos circulating on social media. Did the election observers, who cannot be everywhere, try to verify, to cross-check, before writing their conclusions? The head of the African Union observer mission, former Burundian President Domitien Ndayizeye, replied: "You know what we do with videos. I don't have the skills to be able to discover these little games. So, I hold back.

The opposition also claims that the military picked up ballot boxes as early as midday, to transport them to barracks, particularly on the island of Anjouan. Domitien Ndayizeye's response: "We sent our team there. Our team's report was not compliant, our information did not corroborate with what people said. Now it's time for the investigations.

In the event of any disputes, observers recommend recourse to legal channels.

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• Comoros
• Comoros Presidential Election 2024