The European Union on Wednesday called on the transitional government in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to forge ahead with elections after voters gave overwhelming backing to constitutional reform in a referendum, according to partial results.
The referendum is but a ”starting point”, said EU development commissioner Louis Michel.
”There is no longer an excuse for anybody. Elections must be organised according to plan, before June 30 2006,” the latest allowed under a comprehensive agreement on political transition that ended the 1998-2003 war, he said.
With results in from 12 200 of the country’s 36 000 polling stations, 78,47% of electors had voted ”yes” in Sunday’s referendum.
Michel, a former foreign minister of the DRC’s former colonial power Belgium, said the referendum is ”proof that Congo has come up with a system that allows to usher in democracy”.
”My visit here aims to support work already accomplished and to tell the Congolese leaders: do not draw any legitimacy from this success, the Congolese want to vote and elect their leaders,” he warned.
Michel said the EU will not tolerate any delay in the electoral process.
”I cannot imagine that the electoral law will not be adopted on January 10,” he said.
The executive EU Commission has unblocked €149-million for the DRC elections, making it the main donor.
Presidential and legislative elections are to be held in March and April, followed by regional, local and Senate elections by June 30.
Michel met a number of political leaders during his visit to Kinshasa, including Apollinaire Malu Malu, president of the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI), as well as the presidents of the Senate and the Lower House of Parliament and vice-presidents.
He was due to hold talks with President Joseph Kabila in Lubumbashi on Thursday.
About 24,5-million people were called to the polls to say ”yes” or ”no” to a draft Constitution already approved by a transitional Parliament, which will create a political landscape with a new balance of power between the president and government and a decentralisation of decision-making in 25 new provinces.
The CEI has not said when definitive results from the referendum, the first free and democratic vote in the vast country in 40 years, will be announced.
The DRC press on Wednesday hailed the strong lead of ”yes” votes.
”The yes ahead by a length,” said Uhuru, which is close to Kabila’s party, while the opposition La Tempete des Tropiques headlined: ”78,47% yes and 21,03% no”, adding: ”No province rejected the draft Constitution according to partial CEI results.”
”As the young Congolese democracy expresses itself, yes and no together in the ballot boxes throughout the country,” said the opposition Le Potentiel.
Le Phare called on Michel and the international community to relaunch the political dialogue with Kinshasa ”to avert objections and confrontation” after Sunday’s vote. — Sapa-AFP