On Thursday 11 January, the EU took note of the final results of the 20 December presidential election in the Democratic Republic of the Congo approved by the Constitutional Court, where Félix Tshisekedi was declared the winner, while stressing the importance of future reforms to the electoral process.
“The EU calls on the competent authorities to investigate fairly and transparently all the concerns expressed regarding the failure to respect the procedures of the electoral law and the allegations of fraud and violence”, emphasised the European External Action Service’s spokesperson, Nabila Massrali, in a statement published late on Thursday afternoon.
The EU, therefore, calls on the Congolese authorities, in particular the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the judicial authorities, to address these concerns and to continue with the next stages of the electoral process with the utmost transparency and in full compliance with the Congolese legislation in force.
The EU applauds the enthusiasm and determination of the Congolese people to cast their votes calmly, despite the logistical difficulties, and wishes the authorities and all citizens every success as they embark on their second term in office.
It notes that “several election observation missions nevertheless documented numerous cases of irregularities and incidents that affected the entire electoral process”.
The EU, which has had to abandon the deployment of observers throughout the country in favour of a team of eight electoral experts based in Kinshasa (see EUROPE 13310/23), has announced that, in conjunction with the final reports of the observation missions, “it will offer practical recommendations through its electoral expert mission in order to help implement the reforms that are essential for building the confidence of all stakeholders in the electoral institutions and procedures”.
The spokesperson added that “the European Union wishes to remain committed alongside the Democratic Republic of the Congo and to strengthen the ties between its peoples”. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)