People in Gabon are voting in long-delayed legislative and municipal
polls, the first to be held since a presidential election two years ago
marred by deadly violence and fraud allegations.
Most polling stations in the capital Libreville opened at 8:00am local
time (07:00 GMT) under grey skies and light rain on Saturday.
Posters around Libreville were seen asking the country's 680,000 voters
to turn up to elect 143 new MPs, as well as other local officials.
A divided opposition is unlikely to mount a successful challenge to
President Ali Bongo's ruling Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG), opinion
polls suggest. His key rival, Jean Ping, is boycotting the election, but
most other opposition groups entered the contest in the oil-rich West
African country.
Stanislas Bidoubi, 53-year-old shopkeeper, told the AFP news agency that he was backing an opposition party.
"I want change in my country," said Bidoubi.
Turnout in Gabon elections is usually low, but early queues pointed to
lively voter interest, at least in the centre of the capital.
"I've never missed an election," said Rainatou Wagne.
"Even if there's cheating in every African election, as a Gabonese citizen I prefer to vote," she added.
WATCH Gabon election 2016: At least three dead in violence (2:39)
The Bongo family has ruled Gabon for close to half a century and his
controversial re-election in August 2016 by just a few thousand votes
led Ping to claim that victory had been stolen from him.
Violence broke out and dozens of people were killed, according to the opposition, but the government says only four died.
Ping's headquarters was bombed and the opposition also claimed that
widespread human rights abuses were committed by armed men who took to
the streets.
Before Saturday's election that has been pushed back three times since 2016, the campaign was low key.
But on Saturday, some opposition candidates were pointing to alleged
irregularities, saying that voting papers had gone missing, there had
been attempts to buy votes, and their representatives had been denied
access.
Political divisions run deep in the equatorial African nation, ruled by
Omar Bongo from 1967 until his death in 2009, when his son Ali took
over.
"I am not sure that this election will ease tensions because, since
2016, the country has been torn by a crisis that has divided families
and changed the political scenario," Wilson Andre Ndombet, a political
analyst, said.
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