Fire destroys thousands of DRCongo voting machines
161 views · Published 19 December 2018 · 5:43 · Indexed 29 October 2026
Channel: AP Archive · 2018 · News & Politics
(13 Dec 2018) An early-morning fire in Congo's capital destroyed thousands of voting machines just 10 days before the presidential election, officials said Thursday, saying the blaze appeared to be criminal in nature but vowing that it would not disrupt the vote. Congo's first use of voting machines on December 23, a rarity in Africa, has caused concerns among the opposition, diplomats and experts about possible manipulation in favor of President Joseph Kabila's preferred successor. Kabila is stepping aside after taking power in 2001. The electoral commission said the fire broke out at a warehouse in Kinshasa, adding that it was too early to declare the cause or the extent of the damage. Kabila's chief adviser said the fire was a criminal one and that some 7,000 voting machines and polling booths were burned. Congo's security minister said the number represents 10 percent of the voting machines for Kinshasa but added they will be replaced "very quickly." Major questions remain about how Congo will be able to successfully use the voting machines in the infrastructure-starved country of 40 million voters, many without computer experience. More than 100,000 of the machines have been rolled out so far. The president of Congo's electoral commission said Saturday that they are ready for a vote that will see the nation through its first transition of democratic power at the end of December. "We will do our best to get to this date. ..It will be a good election. Credible, transparent...and the first peaceful transfer of power," Corneille Nangaa said, calling this the third cycle of elections for a young democracy. Congo's presidential vote has been delayed since December 2016, with critics saying that President Joseph Kabila was trying to hold onto power beyond his constitutional mandate. He has agreed to step aside, and 21 presidential candidates will face off on Dec. 23. The country will also hold National Assembly and provincial elections for its more than 40 million registered voters. Nangaa showed off the voting machines that have caused some controversy with the opposition and international communities, saying that given the amount of candidates _ more than 15,000 candidates for 500 National Assembly seats and more than 20,000 for 715 provincial seats _ that a paper vote was too cumbersome, showing 58 pages that resemble a newspaper. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/7be6a079f589ce559acca88ef310d623
