Guinea’s Supreme Court has disqualified almost all parties from contesting the upcoming presidential election, scheduled for December 21.
The court’s decision came on Tuesday after the groups failed to meet a deadline for paying $10 000 required to participate in the poll. Preparations for the election had already been dealt a blow earlier this month, when a coalition of opposition parties announced it would be boycotting the vote. The Front for Democratic Change (Farc) is made up of six parties.
“The way the government is behaving with regards to the forthcoming presidential elections in December is unacceptable,” said opposition politician Mamadou Ba, leader of the Union for Progress and Renewal.
“We [the opposition] will boycott the elections because the party of the president has fixed it so that they [will] win overwhelmingly,” he added.
Guinea’s ailing President Lansana Conte is seeking re-election for a third term. He came to power in a military coup in 1984, after the then dictator — Ahmed Sekou Toure — died.
Conte’s Unity and Progress Party had faced a strong challenge from more than 20 political parties and associations. Now, only a little-known candidate called Mamadou Barrie will join Conte in the race for the presidency.
Jean-Marie Dore, leader of the Union for Progress of Guinea — and spokesperson for the coalition — said the government’s reluctance to stage a fair contest had been shown by its refusal to share the air waves.
“The government is denying the opposition access to the state media, their militants are beating and harassing our supporters, and the climate is just not conducive for free and fair elections,” he said.
Last month, Information Minister Mamadi Conde turned down Farc’s request to read a statement on the government-owned radio station. Officials were quoted as saying the statement contained an allegation that the election had been rigged to give Conte an 85% majority.
Dore’s concerns have been echoed by the European Union, which is withholding assistance worth about $345-million from the West African country. This aid was to have been used to fund the election, among other things.
The EU made its support conditional on the formation of an independent electoral commission, and on all candidates being given equal access to state media. As the government rejected these demands outright, it forfeited international assistance for the elections.
“This is a mockery of democracy,” says Ousmane Bahk, a student at the University of Conakry. “General Conte’s government is undemocratic and may end up turning Guinea into a pariah state.”
When Conte won the last presidential poll five years ago, he quickly moved to arrest Alpha Conde — then his strongest rival. Conde remained in jail for more than a year, on charges that he was plotting to unseat the government. This election was discredited, after observers declared it fraudulent.
Conte has since run Guinea with an iron fist. Opposition to his rule is often suppressed, and many opponents of the government are either in jail or in exile. The president’s deteriorating health has compounded the political crisis in the country.
The head of state suffers from diabetes and other health problems, and is mainly confined to his home town — with occasional journeys to Conakry to attend state functions. This relative absence from public life has confounded many in the country, causing unease among the population.
Siradiou Diallo, an opposition leader, says: “There is a political vacuum in the country with the president away from the seat of government. This is a bad omen and it may lead to strife.”
Already, there is said to be disquiet among units of the armed forces of Guinea, with rumours of a planned coup d’état by senior officers.
Even the president is rattled by the heightened tension in the country. In an address to the army a fortnight ago, Conte warned of “ambitious officers who are plotting to seize power by force”.
“If you want to be head of state, then quit the army and contest elections. That way, you will get the legitimacy deriving from the people,” he added.
Events in Guinea could have repercussions further afield. The country’s neighbours — Liberia, Sierra Leone and Côte d’Ivoire ‒ are either conflict-ridden or enjoying fragile peace. And any attempt at destabilising Guinea might have an adverse impact on the entire, volatile region. — IPS