Angola: UNITA concedes defeat

  1. Posted on Tuesday 9 September 2008 - 05:50
    accreporter
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    Kent Mensah, AfricaNews editor in Accra, Ghana Photo: Mike Legurr
    Opposition UNITA conceded defeat in Angola's first elections for 16 years and has congratulated the ruling MPLA for its landslide victory. With about 80% of votes counted, President Norberto dos Santos' party has bagged 82% of the vote so far and their rival 10.5%, said the electoral commission.
    Angola_Mike_Legurra
    Media reports monitored across the continent by the AfricaNews editorial office in Ghana, show that Angolans are generally happy with UNITA's decision and fears of another civil war is now history. Already, citizens of other African countries are sending congratulatory sms to radio stations for a successful election in Angola.

    The leader of UNITA, Isaias Samakuva, on Monday night said he hopes the winning party would govern in the interest of the people and thanked his supporters for participating in the elections.

    Earlier, Samakuva announced his party's resolve to resort to the court to seek redress because of alleged electoral irregularities in some parts of Angola. The electoral commission also rejected a demand by UNITA for the poll to be re-run in the capital Luanda, saying there was no evidence of alleged fraud, the BBC reported.

    An MPLA spokesman has said that the results were in line with the expectations of the party. President dos Santos told the state-owned Jornal de Angola newspaper that the party's success was due to the dedication of their supporters. "In every neighbourhood, in every village our supporters are there nearly every day like a priest at a Sunday service," he said.

    The elections were seen as a crucial step in the country's recovery from decades of civil war. Voting began on Friday, September 5 but was extended into Saturday because of delays and confusion at polling stations in Luanda province, home to 21 percent of Angola's 8.3 million registered voters

    Some eight million voters are registered in the country - more than a quarter of whom live in the capital. The MPLA has ruled Angola since the country gained independence from Portugal in 1975 but it fought a civil war against UNITA until 2002.

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