Algerian constitutional council confirms Butaflika winning of the elections
The Algerian constitutional council has confirmed results of the Algerian Presidential elections which took place last week and were won by the Algerian President Abdul Aziz Butaflika for a second term of office for five years. This has followed studying the file of the voting process and the cassation and reports of observers.
The chairman of the council, Muhammad Bajjawi, said in a press conference held yesterday in Algiers that the proposed cassations decisions submitted by the candidates reached 192 were studied and did not change the final results announced by the ministry of the interior.
He explained that Butaflika won the first session of the elections at the total majority of voters and got 8.6 millions votes out of 10 million.
Bajjawi confirmed the results of the elections of the other two presidential candidates, Ali Benflis who had 600,000 votes and Saad Abdullah Jabullaj who got 500,000 and Leuiza Hannoun who got 100,000, while candidate Ali Fawzi Rabaain had only 62,000, which is less that the signatures needed for nomination to the Presidential elections, estimated at 75,000 votes.
Meantime, consultations and contacts started between the political parties and the president of the republic to form a new government. It is expected, however, that Butaflika will renew his confidence in Ahmad O Yahya and assign him to form a new government in which the role of parties of the Presidential coalition will be reinforced; the parties which supported Butaflika in his nomination especially the Peace society movement.
It is, however, not ruled out that O Yahya will ask the chairperson of the labor party Leiza Hanoun to take part in the government, as she takes a positive position regarding the results of the Presidential elections. She opposed the inclination of the two other candidates who called for demonstrations and to get out to the streets. Butaflika commended Hannoun's stand and extended her a message of congratulation on the transparency of her election campaign. The prime minister also talked positively about her.
But observers rule out Leuza's participation in a government whose program is in contradiction to the program of her party and economic inclination.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the banned Islamic front for Salvation expressed in a statement their hope that Butaflika's re-elections will lead to the implementation of his project to national reconciliation.
Observers expect that such reconciliation will allow the front's leaders to form a new party under the condition that they will give up violence and the demand to establish an Islamic state in Algeria.
Meantime, the Elysee palace announced that the French President Jacque Chirac will head on Thursday to Algeria where he will be meeting with Butaflika to congratulate him on his winning of the elections and to discuss with him means of strengthening bilateral relations.