In Guinea-Bissau, as the political atmosphere is heating up following the 23rd November presidential election, civil society groups have raised serious concerns about the transparency of the vote-counting process.
They allege that supporters of outgoing President Umaro Sissoco Embaló forcibly expelled observers representing opposition candidate Dr Fernando Dias, who they claim is leading based on the results displayed at polling stations.
There are also reports of armed security forces deployed around regional counting centres, sparking fears of intimidation and possible manipulation of the outcome.
With the National Electoral Commission yet to respond to these allegations, uncertainty continues to grow.
To help us understand the implications of these developments and what this means for Guinea-Bissau’s democracy, we’re joined by Austin Aigbe, regional advocacy officer and ECOWAS Liaison lead at WADEMOS.