President Alpha Conde has urged calm after the publication of partial results of Sunday’s presidential election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) sparked violence in Conakry and across Guinea.
Violence erupted in Guinea where incumbent President Condé looks set for a third term as provisional results put him ahead of his main challenger Cellou Dalein Diallo.
On Wednesday, militants of Diallo’s Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea (UFDG) clashed with security forces, leaving nine people dead.
“I call each and every one of us to a sense of responsibility and patriotism so that it will be possible after this election, whatever the results, to build Guinea together,” Condé wrote on Facebook.
The CENI began publishing the results of the election in dribs and drabs on Tuesday.
The figures announced covered only four constituencies out of 38 in total, namely Matoto, Matam, Kaloum and Boffa.
In these localities, the outgoing president is in the lead.
In Boffa, in the region of Boké (north-west), he obtained 56.69 percent of the votes cast according to the CENI.
In Kaloum, central Conakry, Conde also came out on top with 51.87 percent.
Supporters of Cellou Dalein Diallo took to the streets denouncing what they called an “electoral hold-up” after their favourite candidate declared himself winner of the election last Monday.
According to Condé “there will be a winner but this should not mean that democracy will be threatened or that social peace will be impossible.”
Guinea’s first democratically elected president who had ruled since 2010 is with the conviction that his country “needs true national unity”.
“Beyond personal choices and political divisions, we are all committed to the national and republican pact” he said.
Convinced that Guinea’s future success as a country depends on unity and solidarity from all and sundry the RPG Rainbow-Arc candidate vowed to remain “open to dialogue” with his opponents should he achieve a third term.
ARD/id/cgd/lb/as/APA