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Angola: Voters await election results
The MPLA is widely expected to win a majority of the 220 seats in parliament. The leader of the winning party will become president, making Dos Santos all but certain to secure another five-year term.
Dos Santos has transformed governed Angola from a war ravaged nation through an oil boom that over the last decade into one of the world’s fastest growing economies.
His administration has ploughed billions of dollars into rebuilding the nation with new roads, schools, bridges and dams rising up from the ruins.
Public health and incomes have improved, however, a significant number of Angolans still live in poverty.
Former rebel movment, now the main opposition party – Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) accuses Dos Santos of using his power and money to strengthen his power, and has campaigned promising a better democracy.
UNITA leader Isaias Samakuva has lambasted the organization of the elections, citing worries about accreditation of observers and the failure to make a public audit of the 9.7 million names on the voter roll.
With only 10 percent of votes in the last poll, UNITA needs a strong showing to prove it remains relevant, particularly after a bruising split that saw a top party official form the new Casa party with a high-profile defector from the MPLA.
