Election Woes in the Time of Cholera

There are two news events in Guinea-Bissau to take note of and a third event which could have implications for the future presidential candidate. The news that “The Bissau-Guinean Supreme Court announced that 21 political parties and coalitions have registered for the November 16 legislative elections. The ruling African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau (PAIGC) led by Carlos Gomes, Jr., and the Party for Social Renovation (PRS) are among the parties which will contest these legislative elections. President Nino Vieira has appealed to the international community for financial assistance in the amount of 3.7 million Euros to organize the elections.” This means that the candidates have been nominated and accepted as legitimate by their congress, which should set the stage for any campaigning the various parties might do. It also brings to the forefront that Guinea-Bissau cannot actually afford to hold their own elections, which might imply that spending cuts will necessitate fewer polling places and lead to disenfranchised voters or other negative impacts.

The other major piece of news regarding the campaign would be the massive cholera outbreak which the World Health Organization just upgraded to the status of an emergency, at 6,461 cases of Cholera in Guinea-Bissau and other regional countries and approximately a 94% fatality rate. The government’s inability to control the outbreak should be a focus of the candidates of the election. If you examine the deposition of previous candidates “He couldn’t solve the problems”, any Prime Minister selected at the conclusion this campaign would do well to ensure he either solves the problems or at least controls this outbreak.

Sources for this would include the U.S. State department and Allafrica.com.