Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau gearing up for elections

afrol News, 14 January - Tempers are rising as the anticipated 20 April legislative elections in Guinea-Bissau are being prepared. While the opposition is trying to organise an electoral coordination agreement to oust President Kumba Yala and his followers from power, the President has committed himself to campaign for the Party for Social Renewal (PRS). 

The Bissauan President yesterday announced his intentions of participating in the electoral campaigns of the anticipated parliamentary polls. Mr Yala argued that "if the PRS had won an absolute majority in the last elections, the Guinean people today could have noted improvements in the country." The President also pronounced harsh critiques against the leading opposition party, the African Party for the Independence of the Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC). 

The announcement of the participation of the President in the upcoming elections caused protest among opposition parties, as it is held that this may be unconstitutional. According to Francisco Fadul, leader of the opposition United Social Democratic Party (PUSD), President Yala was abusing his powers, "clearly breaking article 65 of the Guinean Constitution, which bars the Head of the State from any public or private exercise that is not in terms with the function of the President of the Republic." Other opposition leaders made similar remarks.

The PAIGC, which also criticises the President's campaigning for the PRS, however focused on how to win the April polls. PAIGC spokesman Daniel Gomes, confirmed in declaration to 'RDP Africa' - a Portuguese radio and television channel, banned last month - that his party had the intention of arriving on an agreement with other opposition parties to cooperate during the election campaigns. He did not even rule out a broad opposition coalition. 

The Bissauan opposition has been eager to exploit the possibilities given by an anticipated election, and had in fact demanded both legislative and presidential elections. President Yala, on the other hand, hopes to create a parliamentary majority for his policies, which have been deadlocked by an opposition-dominated parliament. The political stalemate has resulted in four different governments since Mr Yala came to power in January 2000.

The present caretaker government, headed by Prime Minister Mario Pires, took office in November last year as President Yala fired his PRS minority government and announced that elections were to place within 90 days. He blamed the "subversive" opposition majority of the National Assembly for the political chaos in the country, although he also claimed that the PRS government of Prime Minister Alamara Nhasse had been "corrupt". 

The opposition however is unanimous in its condemnation of President Yala, who has not been able to promote a reconciliation dialogue. Together with substantial parts of Guinea-Bissau's civil society and churches, they repeatedly have demanded Mr Yala's resignation due to his "antidemocratic behaviours". President Yala is seen as "the principal obstacle" to the small country's "peace and development." 

Also the UN, which is monitoring the peace and development in the country since the end of the civil war, is concerned about the lack of progress under President Yala's leadership. The UN Security Council recently voiced its concern over "the constitutional impasse and the increasing political instability in the country," and appealed to the Bissauan caretaker government to ensure that the forthcoming legislative elections were conducted in a "transparent, fair and credible manner."

Sources: Based on RDP, press reports UN sources and afrol archives

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