(Business in Cameroon) - In the aftermath of the presidential election of October 7, the Francophonie urges candidates to use legal channels in all circumstances. The statement, issued October 11, was signed by Michaëlle Jean (photo), the outgoing Secretary General of the organization.

“The Secretary General calls all parties involved, especially the candidates, to preserve social peace and urges them to give priority to legal channels in all circumstances,” the document said, indicating that the Francophonie has been mobilizing multifaceted technical and political support for several months to support the electoral process.

Therefore, the Secretary General's Special Envoy, Désiré Kadre Ouedraogo, former Prime Minister of Burkina Faso and former President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission, led a fact-finding and contact mission to the country during the election.

The exhortation of the Francophonie occurs in a context where two out of nine candidates (Cabral Libii of the Univers Party and Maurice Kamto of MRC) have begun claiming victory.

The National Commission for General Voting Census started on October 10 a compilation of the election results. This body, after having cleared the post-electoral dispute, has a legal period of five days to transmit its report to the Constitutional Council, which will then proclaim the official results no later than 15 days after the election.

S.A