Bacai Sanha and Vieira go through to second round of presidential election

Malam Bacai Sanha, the candidate of the ruling PAIGC party, and former military ruler Joao Bernardo "Nino" Vieira won the most votes in Guinea-Bissau's presidential election and will go through to a second-round run-off ballot in July, according to provisional results announced on Wednesday. Malam Mane, the chairman of the National Electoral Commission, told a press conference that Bacai Sanha was the front-runner in last Sunday's poll with 146,506 votes - 35.3 percent of the total cast. That was short of the 50 percent majority needed to secure a first round victory. Vieira, a former army general who ruled this small West African country from 1980 to 1999, came second with 118,126 votes, equivalent to 28.5 percent, Mane said. Former president Kumba Yala, the third main contender in the election, was relegated to third place with 106,647 votes or 25.7 percent, he added. If these figures are confirmed in the final official results, which are due to be announced on Thursday or Friday, Yala, who beat Bacai Sanha in the 2000 presidential election, will be forced to drop out of the race. Yala was not immediately available for comment on the provisional results. However, Artur Sanha, the Secretary General of his Social Renovation Party (PRS), told reporters that the numbers given out by the National Electoral Commission were wrong and that Yala was the real winner of the election. "These results are false. We won. We were first," he said tersely. Sanha declined to clarify whether Yala would contest the results of the election. Polling took place peacefully under the watchful eye of about 240 international observers, including 90 from the European Union. The observer teams have unanimously congratulated the authorities on holding a free, fair and well-organised poll. A jubilant Bacai Sanha said he was confident of maintaining his lead in the second round of the election and added that he hoped those who voted for Yala in the first round would support him. "The people of Guinea voted en masse and showed that they are politically mature and know what they want," Bacai Sanha said. Vieira and his campaign officials were not immediately available for comment. Mane, the head of the National Electoral Commission, said there had been an exceptionally high turnout, with about 80 percent of Guinea-Bissau's 538,000 voters casting their ballot. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan issued a statement on Monday congratulating the people of Guinea-Bissau on the "peaceful conduct" of the election and "turning out in large numbers to choose their new leader." But foreseeing possible protests from losing candidates, he urged all sectors of society to refrain from any statement or action that could provoke tension. Annan also called on all 13 presidential candidates to accept the election result. Yala, who was overthrown by a bloodless coup in September 2003, was elected five years ago on a ticket of national reconciliation after a 1998/99 civil war. But the former philosophy teacher soon became well known for his mercurial temperament. His government proved chaotic and rapidly led this former Portuguese colony into virtual bankruptcy. Yala dissolved parliament in 2002 and failed to call fresh elections, he dismissed half of the Supreme Court, indulged in constant cabinet reshuffles and left civil servants, teachers and health workers unpaid for months on end. There were widespread sighs of relief when the army decided to remove him from power. Although support for Yala has waned, the former president still commands strong support from his Balanta ethnic group, which accounts for 30 percent of Guinea-Bissau's 1.3 million population and comprises the backbone of the army. His PRS is the largest opposition party in parliament. None of the other 10 candidates in the election came anywhere near the top three. Francisco Fadul, the leader of the United Social Democratic Party (PUSD), the second largest opposition party in parliament, came a distant fourth with less than 12,330 votes - less than three percent. Bacai Sanha, a former speaker of parliament, commanded strong support in Guinea-Bissau's main towns. He served briefly as interim president following the overthrow of Vieira in May 1999, and organised the elections which brought Yala to power in February 2000. His African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde (PAIGC) won parliamentary elections in March last year and went on to form the country's present government. Henrique Rosa, the current interim head of state, was appointed with the support of all the main parties shortly after the 2003 coup to lead Guinea-Bissau back to democracy. He was not a candidate in this election. The constitution stipulates that if no candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote in the first ballot, a second round run-off vote must take place 21 days after the official results are confirmed.