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Innocent Madonko in KINSHASA, DRC

Former Zambian Vice President Enoch Kavindele has been appointed Head of the Southern African Development Community Electoral Observer Mission (SEOM) to the Democratic Republic of Congo general elections scheduled for 20 December 2023.

In a statement, SADC said Zambian President and chairperson of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation, Mr Hakainde Hichilema, had appointed Mr Kavindele and mandated the SADC secretariat to coordinate the SEOM including facilitation of in-country deployment of observers.

President Hichilema further appointed Ambassador Lazarus Kapambwe as the Alternate Head of Mission.

“The SEOM will be deployed to 18 out of 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo to observe the pre and post-election phases and the polling day. The Mission’s objective is to assess the conduct of the elections in accordance with the revised SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections of 2021.

“These principles emphasise the importance of citizen participation in the democratic and developmental processes, the implementation of measures to prevent political violence, intimidation and intolerance, and the promotion of equal opportunities for all political parties to access the State media and for all citizens to access information. Furthermore, the Mission emphasizes the significance of acceptance and respect for the electoral results by all political parties,” the statement said.

The SEOM for the DRC will be officially launched on Friday 15 December at a hotel in Kinshasa. Mr Kavindele was also Head of the SEOM during general elections in the Kingdom of Eswatini on 29 September 2023.