Electoral body urges better turnout on second day of poll

As Mozambique entered its second day of voting for presidential and parliamentary elections on Thursday, the National Electoral Commission (CNE) expressed concern at the low voter numbers on the first day. "We note with concern the low turnout at the polls," chairperson Arao Litsure told journalists in the capital, Maputo. "A few hours before the close of polling, we must remind voters that voting is a civic duty," he said. "We call on all voters who have not yet voted to make their way to voting stations to exercise their right to vote, and avoid leaving it to the last minute." Turnout at polling stations around the country was "variable", according to the Mozambique Political Process Bulletin, an independent watchdog published by the European Parliamentarians for Africa. Bulletin correspondents reported that several polling stations in remote northern areas of the country failed to open on Wednesday, owing to heavy rain. CNE officials who spoke to IRIN were unable to confirm whether these stations had opened by midday on Thursday. Other problems reported by the Bulletin were mainly logistical - not all the voting stations had received the printed voters' roll, and there was a shortage of inkpads for illiterate voters to make a thumb print on their ballot slips. According to the Mozambique Information Agency, the opposition RENAMO's office in Matola, near the capital, was burnt down on Monday night. If this was the result of arson, as claimed by RENAMO, it would be one of the more serious incidents of violence reported during the course of the election campaign. Press reports from across Mozambique suggested an orderly day's voting on Wednesday. In the last parliamentary elections in 1999, FRELIMO won 48.5 percent of the vote and RENAMO, along with coalition partners, 38.8 percent. In the presidential poll, FRELIMO candidate Joaquim Chissano scored 52 percent and RENAMO leader Afonso Dhlakama 48 percent. Chissano, who has ruled Mozambique since 1986, has retired as president and party leader, although eligible for another term in office. FRELIMO's presidential candidate is Armando Guebuza.