APA-Pretoria (South Africa) President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday congratulated his Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) counterpart Félix Tshisekedi on his re-election following elections held in December 2023.
Millions of Congolese voted in synchronised general elections on December 20 to choose national, provincial and local government representatives.
According to results announced by the Independent Electoral Commission (CENI) on 31 December, Tshisekedi got about 73 percent of the presidential vote while his nearest challenger, Moise Katumbi could only garner 18 percent.
Ramaphosa commended the people of the DRC for exhibiting maturity, a sense of calm and unity during the period of elections.
He said through the elections “the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo have taken a solid step towards consolidating democracy in their country, and have expressed their desire for a peaceful, secure and prosperous future”.
The elections have, however, been condemned as a “sham” by several opposition candidates who have demanded a rerun.
The opposition argues that the poll was allegedly marred by widespread logistical problems, which saw voting being extended to a second day in some parts of the vast country.
According to some observer missions, about two-thirds of polling stations opened late, while 30 percent of voting machines did not work on the first day of the vote.
Ramaphosa called for calm should any of the participants dispute the elections results and urged all parties to follow legal channels as set out in the constitution of the DRC.
JN/APA