by Nurat Uthman
Chad’s constitutional court on Thursday declared Mahamat Idriss Deby winner of the May 6 presidential election, after dismissing challenges by two opposing candidates, on the grounds that the allegations of fraud lacked sufficient proof.
“In view of the votes cast on the occasion of the presidential election of May 6, Mahamat Idriss Deby having obtained … more than the absolute majority of votes cast, that it is appropriate to declare him president-elect of the republic,” the council’s president, Jean-Bernard Padare, said.
Thursday’s declaration, which placed Deby ahead with 61 percent of the vote, followed by second-placed candidate Succes Masra with 18.54 percent, cemented a victory for Deby, extending his family’s decades-long rule in Chad.
Masra, who has served as the prime minister of Chad’s transitional government since January, under Deby, on Monday lodged an appeal with the constitutional council to challenge the preliminary results released last week which favored Deby.
The opposition leader and Transformers Party candidate said he would give a live address on Thursday evening. Last week, Masra claimed victory before the constitutional council announced the preliminary results and alleged that vote rigging was being planned.
Beral Mbaikoubou, the spokesperson for Chad’s opposition Movement of Chad Patriots for the Republic, MPTR, echoed Masra’s rigging allegations.
In an interview with VOA before the council’s proclamation, Mbaikoubou warned that Chad may descend into violence and chaos if Deby was announced the winner.
“Deby rigged elections by falsifying results sheets and intimidating civilians with his military,” Mbaikoubou said, claims that Deby has dismissed as false.
Lydie Beassemda, the only female candidate in the May 6 elections said the nation was becoming a Deby dynasty, referring to the fact that Deby seized power after his father, President Idriss Deby was killed by rebels, in 2021.
“Deby is not Chad’s democratically elected president and civilians have so far decided not to violently protest the stolen victory because they want peace,” Beassemda told the nation’s state television on Thursday.
While some opposition figures maintained that there was electoral fraud, others like Albert Pahimini Padacke, one of the candidates who challenged the preliminary results, congratulated Deby’s win.
Chad, an oil rich nation, is the first of a string of coup-hit states in West and Central Africa’s Sahel region to attempt a return to constitutional rule by holding elections.
Deby’s victory marked the end of a three-year transitional period to civilian rule. It also prolonged his family’s rule, which has had a firm grip on power since his father took over in a coup in the early 1990s.
At least 10 people, including children, were killed and dozens were injured by celebratory gunfire on Friday following the announcement of the preliminary results, according to Amnesty International and Chadian media.
