Kagame’s three rivals accept poll defeat

KIGALI, Thursday

Rwanda’s official opposition parties that participated in the Monday’s poll, were required - by law - to contest the out come of the tally within 48 hours, but just hours after the official results were announced on Wednesday they all conceded defeat.

The three rival candidates representing different political parties have been accused by critics and human rights organizations of having close links to President Paul Kagame’s ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and thus offering no credible opposition.

However, by Wednesday evening all the three including Jean Damascene Ntawukuliryayo’s Social Democratic Party (PSD), Prosper Higiro’s Liberal Party (LP) and Alvera Mukabaramba of the Party for Peace and Concord) accepted defeat.

This means that the country’s electoral body would go ahead and gazette President Paul Kagame 93 percent landslide victory as official and declare him as president for a second and last term.

The unofficial and unregistered opposition headed by Victoire Ingabire who is on charges of funding rebels in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo and espousing genocide ideology, rejected the result saying the three conceding candidates were a democratic smokescreen and stooges of Kagame's RPF.

Ms Ingabire, talking to the international press this week, said the recently concluded campaign playing field had been uneven, with her party and others including Frank Habineza’s Green Party and another called Parti Social Imberakuri, were prevented from registering to contest the ballot.

The PPC candidate, Dr Mukabaramba the only woman in the race, whose party managed a miserable 0.4 percent of the votes cast, said on Wednesday that she had accepted Kagame’s victory.

“Elections were peaceful and transparent, and I accept the outcome. The electorate voted for the candidate of their choice and I don’t have any objection to that; I accept and respect the results that came from the election,” she told the press.

Prosper Higiro who represented PL said, “I want to inform you that I accept the election results. This was the first time PL contested for the presidency. Though we did not achieve what we wanted, we learnt lessons in these elections which will help us in the in future, he said.
PSD’s Dr Ntawukuriryayo a deputy speaker in the Lower Chamber of Parliament, who is was President Kagame’s nearest rival winning at least 5.15 percent of the vote had earlier during the week said that as a democrat he was ready to accept the outcome of the elections.

”This is a very big achievement for my country and myself. This is what we have fought for all along and, as Rwandans, we have demonstrated democratic maturity,” he added.

On Wednesday a top National Electoral Commission (NEC) official, Charles Munyaneza, announced that Mr. Kagame had won with 93.08 percent of the total votes cast. NEC said that of the 5.1 million registered voters, 5.04 million were cast representing a 97.51 percent turnout.

While the EAC observers said that Rwanda’s poll, the second in post genocide era was in conformity with international standards, the Commonwealth Observers Group (COG) said in a provisional statement that was released Wednesday that the process was well organised and peaceful.

President Kagame won the last election in 2003, the first since the 1994 genocide, with 95 percent of the vote.