ADDIS ABABA, June 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ethiopians have been voting in key elections on Monday amid rising tensions and a conflict in the northern Tigray region.
This pandemic-delayed poll is Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s first electoral test since coming to power in 2018.
But the vote was postponed in Tigray, where the army has been fighting a local force since November.
Insecurity and logistical problems have hit other parts of the country as well, so overall there was no voting in about a fifth of constituencies.
The Tigray conflict has sparked a humanitarian crisis, with 350,000 people living in famine conditions, according to a recent assessment.
The head of the electoral commission, Birtukan Mideksa, said that while things had gone mostly smoothly she was worried about the intimidation of opposition party agents in some places – particularly in the Amhara region and the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region.
“Some complain they have been beaten or denied access to voting stations,” she told journalists.
“If this issue is not resolved immediately the outcome of the election might be compromised.”
Voting was due to end at 18:00 local time (15:00 GMT) but has been extended by three hours in some areas because election materials arrived late.
In the capital, Addis Ababa, saw long queues of voters during the day. It is one area where Abiy is expected to face a stiff challenge and where the opposition has succeeded in the past.
“I came here to contribute to the election which I believe could be a great milestone for democracy,” said Demiss Beyene, who started queuing two hours before polls opened.
“I believe the election will bring in peace… I really wish this election brings back our unity, instead of dividing us over ethnicity,” Tadelech Benti, another voter in Addis Ababa, said.
The general election, the first since 2015, was originally slated for August 2020 but was rescheduled because of coronavirus.
Results are expected within five days.
In the last election, the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) coalition and its allies won all the seats but Abiy has dissolved the coalition and created a new party – the Prosperity Party – in an attempt to reduce ethnic division. The TPLF, however, did not join.
Abiy will keep his post if the party wins a majority of the 547 seats in the national assembly. He says the polls will be “the nation’s first attempt at free and fair elections”.
More than 40 parties have fielded candidates but most of them are regional parties.
In some pivotal regions, such as Oromia, opposition parties are boycotting the election, alleging government intimidation. — NNN-AGENCIES
