2023-05-03 06:54:18
The President of Guinea-Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, warned this Tuesday that he will not set another date for the holding of the legislative elections scheduled for June 4.
“On the 4th there will be elections and that they are orderly, transparent. I will not make any more decrees to set another date for the elections. I have already done it twice”, said Umaro Sissoco Embaló to journalists, quoted by the Observer.
Umaro Sissoco Embaló dissolved the National People’s Assembly, the country’s parliament, in May 2022 and scheduled legislative elections for December 18 of the same year, but the Government, following meetings with political parties, proposed that the elections be postponed to May of this year.
The Guinean President ended up scheduling the legislative elections for the next 4th of June.
“There is nothing to prevent the elections on the 4th, because it is a consensual date. Parties are free to join. Guinea-Bissau will not be hostage to anyone and what happened on February 1st will not happen once more and anything will have an adequate response”, said Umaro Sissoco Embaló, adding that the date of the elections was determined together with the Government and parties with parliamentary representation.
“If there are elections that will take place in an orderly and peaceful manner, they are those on the 4th”, said Umaro Sissoco Embaló, recalling that he set the date following hearing the parties with parliamentary representation, which represent the “voice of the people”.
Sources linked to the electoral process admitted last week that Guinea-Bissau needs US$3.5 million to make the legislative elections possible and is waiting for the international community to mobilize that amount.
Sources in the Guinean Government admitted the existence of “this deficit”, but recalled “the country’s effort” that has made it possible to fund, so far, 70% of all estimated funding for the holding of elections.
The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the Government of Guinea-Bissau signed in March the Project to Support Electoral Cycles, for the period between 2023 and 2025, in the amount of 5.3 million euros.
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