Vote counting under way in Benin after low turnout
Vote counting is under way in the West African country of Benin, despite a low voter turnout in Sunday’s election.
CAPE TOWN, April 12 (ANA) – Vote counting is under way in the West African country of Benin, despite a low voter turnout in Sunday’s election.
According to local media reports, opposition campaigners had called for a boycott of the election. Streets were reportedly quiet on Sunday, especially in anti-government strongholds.
Protests erupted in the country recently, after opposition demonstrators burned property of pro-government deputies and blockaded roads, after president Patrice Talon’s “broken” promise to serve only one term in office.
The opposition wants Talon to honour a promise made when he was first elected, to step down after five years to avoid “complacency” and seek to limit future presidents to a single term, reported Today.ng.
Provisional results of the first round of the election are expected by Tuesday.
According to Al Jazeera, protests in several cities this week turned violent.
It reported that some people were killed in gunfire on Thursday in the central town of Bante when security forces fired warning shots, its mayor told local radio, without saying how many died, reported Al Jazeera.
According to the BCC, the head of the electoral commission said most polling stations had opened on time despite opposition supporters blocking roads to northern and central Benin.
Talon faced two little-known rivals in Sunday’s election with most opposition figures from the West African country either living in exile or disqualified from running in the election.
The candidates include Alassane Soumanou of the opposition FCBE party, who is a former minister, and Corentin Kohoué, who is seen as a wild card according to the BBC.
– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Naomi Mackay