Dieudonné Mirimo, the first reporter of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), confirmed that the results of the first round of the presidential elections will be known on the evening of Sunday August 20 next, exactly three weeks after the elections of July 30.

INTERVIEW

What is the situation with regard to the compilation of the results?
We have just published the partial results of 107 out of 169 results and we have already finished the compilation of 98.32% of the votes with regard to the presidential election. For the legislative elections, we are at a figure of 46%, and this work is ongoing, and from next week we will start to give provisional results, district by district.

When exactly will the presidential results be announced?
The result of the presidential elections will be announced on the evening of Sunday August 20, according to the calendar of the Independent Electoral Commission.

Do you think there will be unrest in Kinshasa if one candidate wins the elections in the first round?
I do not believe that there will be unrest, because the results which we will announce will be those of the popular will. We have already demanded of one and all to accept the results that will be announced by the IEC, and the people are prepared to accept those results. We do not believe that there will be any trouble.

In the case of a second round, will the electoral calendar remain the same?
The calendar for the second round, fixed for October 29 2006, will not change, and it will be combined with the legislative / provincial elections.

Is the budget for the second round assured?
At present we have budget deficit, but we have financial donors who will be prepared to assist us in covering this deficit before we arrive at this date, and this will allow us to organise a second round in conjunction with the planned legislative elections.

How much is this deficit?
It is around 46 million dollars.

What do you think of the conduct of the candidates up until now?
Up until now the candidates have been well behaved, we had some isolated cases but in general all was well up until the poll, as is the case on the eve of the publication of the provisional results. What is your message for the Congolese people at this historic moment?
The Congolese people waited 41 years to have democratic, transparent and free elections, and they also waited through 16 years of transition, the longest in Africa.
We invite one and all to await the results with calm, and that they be accepted by everyone including the candidates, because they will reflect the will of a sovereign people that mobilised themselves for the vote on Sunday July 30 last.

In addition I want to congratulate the people that went massively to the polling stations and we believe that same way in which it was mobilized to go to the poll. We believe in the same manner that the people who went to the polls will welcome with joy the results which will be published. This is because this will enable us to put an end, for once and for all, of the crisis of legitimacy that our country has known for several years.
When the results come out we must all accept them, because this is for the future of our country. We will then begin another era, that of the rebuilding and the development of the country.