Gabon court confirms Bongo election win

Gabon's constitutional court early Sunday confirmed the landslide win obtained by President Ali Bongo's Gabonese Democratic Party (GDP) in December general elections. The court did not sum up the results, announcing them constituency by constituency, but according to a count by AFP the GDP won more than 100 of the 120 seats, with six constituencies due to poll again. At least five non-GDP members were elected in the December 17 polls. Prime Minister Paul Biyoghe Mba was due to resign within hours, with Bongo to decide whether or not to keep him. A coalition of parties loosely allied with the opposition National Union boycotted the election, denouncing the absence of biometric methods to ensure a free and fair vote in the equatorial African country. The other main opposition party, the Union of the Gabonese People (UPG), long favoured a boycott before taking part at the last minute. The abstention rate was 65.72 percent according to the official figures. The UPG protested at "massive fraud", while opposition parties that did not take part in the election said they would not recognise the outcome. The vote was the first parliamentary election since Bongo's father Omar died in 2009 after 41 years in power. Bongo, 52, campaigned on his economic achievements and Gabon's co-hosting of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations with Equatorial Guinea, an event that has spurred major investment. In his New Year wishes to the nation, Bongo thanked the electorate for his party's sweeping victory. "I have taken the full measure of your backing for our plans for society.... You have given me the necessary majority to speed up reforms and implement the measures needed for a developing Gabon."