Guinea-Bissau’s presidential and legislative elections, scheduled for December 6, will have to be delayed, Prime Minister Ilídio Vieira Té told reporters on Thursday, though he did not set a new date for the vote.
The West African nation held a presidential election in November last year that was disrupted when soldiers toppled the civilian government before the results could be announced.
Voters in August approved a new constitution that expanded presidential powers.
The prime minister told reporters that political parties had not held their congresses to choose their leaders, and potential candidates for the election had missed the October 6 deadline for submitting their bids to the nation’s Supreme Court.
The prime minister did not offer a timeframe for setting a new date for a vote, stating, “there are no conditions for holding the elections scheduled for December 6”.
Last week, the government blocked the former president, Umaro Sissoco Embalo, from returning, citing national security concerns. Embalo had planned to return on Sunday and contest the presidential election.
Civil society activists say the current interim government has used fear to crush political dissent, citing the unsolved murder of Vigario Luis Balanta, a popular rapper and founder of a political movement, as a high-profile example. The government denies a role in Balanta’s killing, and says it is investigating to find those responsible.
