Manual vote count under way in DR Congo capital
Votes are being counted by hand in parts of the capital city, Kinshasa, in a general election marred by delays and claims of fraud.
I’m at the Mwinda Mopela polling station which ended up staying open until the early hours of Thursday. The top electoral officer Marie-France tells me there had been power cuts and long waits while replacing “some dysfunctional electronic kits”.
“All the polling booths opened and closed,” she insists.
For the first time since 2006, voting has been extended into a second day in some parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“This Thursday, voters can continue to cast their ballots in polling stations which didn’t open on Wednesday,” said Patricia Nseya, the rapporteur of the Electoral Commission.
There are more that 75,000 polling stations across the country, which is four times the size of France.
The full extent of logistical problems at this year’s vote is not yet clear.
By BBC
