"Angola heads the electoral observation mission for the elections in the Republic of Congo in its capacity as President-in-Office of the CIRGL," according to a statement released Saturday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Mirex).
The official launching ceremony of the electoral observation mission and the presentation of its head, Ambassador Manuel Augusto, took place this Saturday in the capital of the Republic of Congo, Brazzaville, with the participation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António, according to the same statement.
The minister heads a delegation that traveled to the Congolese capital on Friday and that also includes Ambassador Miguel César Domingos Bembe, director of the Directorate of Africa, Middle East and Regional Organizations (DAMOOR), among other senior officials of Mirex.
"The Angolan delegation, which traveled to Brazzaville, fulfills a mission and responds to the invitation of the Government of the Republic of Congo to the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region to send an Observation Mission to that country, with a view to monitoring the presidential elections," according to the same Mirex note.
More than 2.5 million voters were called this Sunday to elect the President of the Republic of Congo, and Denis Sassou Nguesso should unsurprisingly be legitimized to add another five years to the 36 he has accumulated in power.
Sassou Nguesso faces six opponents, whose candidacies were validated by the Constitutional Court only a month ago (February 17th).
The head of state, Sassou Nguesso, has won every election since 2002.
The 2016 presidential election, though the most disputed and despite being heavily contested, was not only the exception, but had as its epilogue the 20-year prison sentence in 2018 of two candidates - Jean-Marie Mokoko and André Okombi Salissa - for "compromising the security of the state."
At 77 years old, and after the constitutional reform in 2015, in which he erased from the 'Magna Carta' the limitation of power to two presidential terms, Sassou Nguesso has a clear path to remain as head of state until 2031, when he will turn 88.
