Both ruling and opposition parties in Ivory Coast have claimed victory in parliamentary polls that saw the former allies go head-to-head barely four months after its fatal presidential elections.
The legislative elections – a test of stability following the violence that marred last year’s presidential polls – have been trailed with controversy following the release of early provisional results by the country’s official election body. However, till now, no official results have been announced.
“We have achieved our goal of securing around 60% of the seats,” said Adama Bictogo, Executive Director of the ruling Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace Party (RHDP).
Meanwhile, on Sunday, the centre-right Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI) said it won “around 128 seats with our allies.” A number that would be just enough to secure a majority of the 255 seats available in the Ivory Coast parliament.
New and Old Alliances
In the last legislative vote of December 2016, the RHDP and PDCI were allied, winning an absolute majority with 167 seats on a turnout of 34 percent. But last year’s presidential election crisis shattered that deal.
For this year’s attempt at the polls, the PDCI forged a new election alliance with the center-left coalition Together for Democracy and Solidarity (EDS) whose driving force is the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) of former president Laurent Gbagbo. The parties said they aimed to prevent President Alassane Ouattara and the RHDP from “consolidating absolute power” in the world’s largest cocoa grower.
Manipulation and Fraud
Speaking further on the opposition party’s alleged win, PDCI general manager Niamkey Koffi, claimed provisional results announced earlier by the independent electoral commission were “strewn with fraud, tampering, and manipulation.”
“Our concern is that the results may be manipulated,” said Koffi, warning the government against “any attempt to falsify” them.
Koffi also stated that participation “did not exceed 20%,” a 14 per cent drop from the figures recorded in 2016. The opposition representative cited “fear of violence” as the major hindrance to participation at the polls.
Towards the end of last year, President Alassane Ouattara won a controversial third consecutive term with more than 94% support as the opposition boycotted the election in the Ivory Coast. Violence surrounding the presidential election in October claimed over 80 lives in the West African nation.
