Voters in Gabon are expressing worrythe Sunday's presidential election will be neither free nor fair. They say theelectoral commission is ill-prepared to organize a transparent election.
Thewinner of Sunday's vote will succeed long time leader Omar Bongo who died of aheart attack at a Spanish Clinic in June this year.
So far, Ali Ben Bongo, sonof the former president seems to be the frontrunner.
But opposition groups haveaccused the electoral commission of failing to address their concerns about theelectoral register, which they describe as problematic.
Desire Ename,publisher of Gabon's independent Echos Dunord newspaper said that Gabonese are not reposing confidence in the fairness ofSunday's vote.
"Ithink that the electoral commission did not do well in the organization of thiselection?most people who wanted to participate in the election were notregistered? so many of them did not register. So, by now so many people are inthe situation where they probably will not be able to participate in theelection," Ename said.
Hesaid people are expressing worry that the election will not be transparent.
"Anotheraspect has been the impartiality of the commission, we don't feel it. We don'tfeel that the commission is really impartial," he said.
Enamesaid the government has failed to reassure the public about the transparency ofthe election.
"Theminister of interior doesn't give the answers many people are asking about theway the election (is) going to be organized in the sense of seeing a realtransparent election, and the minister of interior doesn't give the appropriateanswer to that," Ename said.
Hedenied the security situation is tensed ahead of the vote.
"Thereis no problem of security. Everything is normal (and) there is no particularproblem. We don't have troops in the streets; we don't have this kind of thing.People are going to their occupations like they want. Most candidates arehaving their meetings and in fact there is no security problem," he said.
Enamesaid reaction is mixed ahead of the election.
"They(Gabonese) have two attitudes; on the one hand some people feel they areanxious. They feel that the country will be going through turmoil after theelection like we saw it in 1993 and 1998?but the others are optimistic becausethey want a change," Ename said.
Hesaid there are no guarantees that Sunday's vote will be peaceful.
Earlierthis month several opposition presidential candidates demanded a postponementof the election, claiming the electoral body was not prepared to organize theelection.
Butthe interim transitional government led by Rose Francine Rogombé, and Prime Minister, Paul Mba Biyoghe rejected theopposition's demand, paving the way for Sunday's vote.