The president of Congo-Brazzaville Denis Sassou Nguesso held his final rally ahead of Sunday’s presidential election. Supporters gathered in the capital Brazzaville on Friday to applaud the strongman, who hopes to extend his grip over the country.
At the age of 82 and after more than 40 years in power, Denis Sassou Nguesso is the clear favourite to win the upcoming vote.
With the opposition divided, sidelined and largely absent, observers say voter turnout could slump to a record low in the oil-rich but impoverished central African country.
Sassou Nguesso ranks as one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders, along with Equatorial Guinea’s Teodoro Obiang Nguema and Cameroonian President Paul Biya.
“Honestly, I don’t see the point of voting on March 15. Whether I vote or not, we’ll have the same winner,” said Cyril Massamba, who lives in Brazzaville.
Sassou Nguesso, a career military officer, first led Congo under a one-party system from 1979 to 1992 before losing the first multi-party elections to former prime minister Pascal Lissouba, whom Sassou Nguesso then overthrew in a civil war in 1997.
He has since ruled Congo with an iron fist. Constitutional reforms removing age limits and term restrictions have allowed him to extend his reign election after election, despitevarious corruption scandals.
Six candidates are now bidding to unseat him but few have the resources to compete with the ruling Congolese Labour Party (PCT).
Lacking broad support, opposition candidates have been unable to rally behind a single challenger.
The two main opposition parties have chosen not to stand, one of them arguing that conditions for a free and transparent election have not been met, and urging supporters to vote “according to their conscience.”
“Denis Sassou Nguesso controls the entire electoral process,” said Clement Mierassa, an opposition figure, former minister and previous presidential candidate. He argued that all those running against the president were just placeholders.
Jean-Marie Michel Mokoko and André Okombi Salissa, two prominent candidates who challenged Sassou Nguesso in the disputed 2016 election, remain in prison, serving 20-year sentences for “endangering state security”.
