STORY: Polling for general elections extended in DR Congo, after logistics problems, complaints
SHOOTING TIME: Dec. 20, 2023
DATELINE: Dec. 21, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:47
LOCATION: Kinshasa
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of streets of Kinshasa
2. various of the voting sites and voters

STORYLINE:

Polling for the general elections will continue on Thursday in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) announced Wednesday evening.

Some 44 million voters in the DRC were registered to cast their ballots on Wednesday to elect a new president, members of the National Assembly and Provincial Assemblies, as well as municipal councilors, but many polling stations were not able to open on time due to logistic difficulties. There were also reports of sporadic violence.

Some polling stations started late in the day with long lines waiting.

Five presidential candidates have demanded the organization of a new election with a new office of CENI.

In addition to malfunctioning voting machines, several polling stations also faced a shortage of ballot papers and voting booths. Some voters found that their names were not on the list.

According to the observation mission of the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO) and the Church of Christ in Congo (ECC), 31.37 percent of polling stations did not open on time across the country.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Kinshasa.
(XHTV)