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Brass For AfricaOn 21 August, Baliesima wrote to advise the outcome of DR Congo's first election in 45 years:
Dear Grant,
The presidential elections outcomes have been published the last night.
Kabila (the current president) got 44% of the votes, and Bemba 20%. And because there is no one who got more than 50%, the second round of elections is to be carried out to separate Kabila and Bemba.
We still need your prayers.
Blessings
Baliesima Kadukima Albert
David Pankratz of the Canadian Christian Mennonite University writes:
It was a joy to share this election experience with the Congolese. It was an honour to be invited by the churches of the Congo to walk with them in this historic moment, and it was sobering to see how seriously the Congolese took a process that we take so for granted.
Pankratz writes of the key role of the church in Congo:
One aspect of the election that cannot be ignored is the active role that the church played in its success.
The church in Congo … remains the only functioning element of civil society in the entire country. The schools have virtually collapsed from lack of funding and qualified teachers, the postal service is non-existent and the police and army have become little more than a kinder and gentler criminal force. But the church continues to provide a stable environment for worship and service in Congo.
Read the full article on the Canadian Mennonite University website at www.cmu.ca/news/congo_electn_rep.html
The UN's IRINnews Countdown in Congo reports that the 2nd round of the poll for president will be on 29 October. Unlike Australia, where we cast preferences to ensure that a candidate must achieve over 50% of the "two party preferred vote", Congo's electoral law a candidate must win 50 percent plus one vote to be declared the outright winner.
Read the full article on the IRIN News website.
