By Mohamed al-Bakay
NOUAKCHOTT (AA) – Mauritanian opposition figures have decried results of a Saturday referendum in which 85 percent of eligible voters reportedly voiced support for constitutional changes proposed by the country’s ruling party, according to Mauritania’s official electoral commission.
Mauritanians voted Saturday on the proposed amendments, which, if enacted, would do away with the country’s Senate and High Court of Justice; establish a system of regional administrative councils; adopt a proportional system in national elections; and change Mauritania’s national flag, among other things.
The referendum, however, was boycotted by the country’s main opposition parties amid widespread accusations of voter fraud by the ruling party of President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.
Early Monday morning, Mauritania’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced that the ‘Yes’ vote had overwhelmingly prevailed with at least 85 percent of ballots cast.
According to the INEC, 53 percent of the country’s registered voters had taken part in the poll.
Members of the Mauritanian opposition, however, have been quick to cry foul, alleging widespread vote fraud.
Speaking to reporters late Monday, Al-Hassan Ould Mohamed, head of Mauritania’s Institution of Democratic Opposition (a loose coalition of opposition parties), slammed what he described as the “fraud and abuse” to which Mauritanian voters had been subjected.
Saying that poll results had been manipulated by the authorities, Ould Mohamed condemned what he described as “the complicity of the government, administration and senior officials [in rigging the vote] amid an atmosphere of irresponsibility and moral degradation”.
The INEC, he went on to allege, had “facilitated, prepared and protected” the vote-rigging.
Meanwhile, in stark contrast to the opposition’s claims, President Ould Abdel Aziz’s ruling Union for the Republic party has described Saturday’s referendum as “transparent and fair”.
Speaking in advance of the vote, Ould Abdel Aziz had said the proposed constitutional changes were aimed at “promoting the country’s development and raising citizens’ standards of living”.
He had also accused opposition groups that boycotted the poll of “attempting to destabilize the country”.
Ould Abdel Aziz seized power in a 2008 military coup. One year later, he won a presidential election the integrity of which has been questioned by critics.
Shortly before Saturday’s referendum, Ould Abdel Aziz announced he had no plans to run for a third term as president.
