Guinea’s constitutional court on Saturday declared President Alpha Conde as the winner of the disputed election held last month, rejecting allegations of fraud during the voting, reported Reuters. The opposition claimed irregularities in the October 18 vote but the court said the opposition had no evidence to prove its claim.
“Mister Alpha Conde … is declared elected in the first round as president of the Republic of Guinea,” said court president Mohamed Lamine Bangoura.
The Court announced the incumbent president Conde, the candidate of the ruling party RPG (Rally of the Guinean People) won the election with about 59.5 percent of the votes, while his main opponent, Cellou Dalein Diallo, president of the Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea, trailed behind with some 33.49 percent votes.
The court said that it evaluated the opposition candidates’ objections and found that they were unreasonable and updated Conte’s vote total from 50.49% to 59.50%.
The court’s ruling has made Conde president for the third time. He was elected as Guinea’s first democratically elected leader in 2010 and won re-election in 2015. He reacted to the court’s ruling by appealing to national unity.
“I dedicate this victory to all Guineans, whether they voted for me or not. Beyond our differences, it’s the Republic of Guinea that we need to put above our personal ambitions,” Conde said on his Facebook page.
Opposition leader Diallo, a former prime minister who lost to Conde in two previous elections, condemned the court’s ruling but didn’t call for any protests, as he has in the past.
“The members of the high court of our country preferred to place themselves at the service of a man and his ambitions rather than respecting their oath and defending the law,” he said in a statement.
The 82-year-old president pushed for a constitution reform earlier this year to bypass a two-term limit and subsequent candidacy in the October 18 polls sparked violent protests in Guinea that killed dozens of people.
