Benflis: “I’m the true President-elect as the people granted me four million votes”

Presidential candidate Ali Benflis has blamed the constitutional council for covertly siding with incumbent president Abdellaziz Bouteflika by inflating the final election returns in the latter’s favour as part of what he called “a legalized fraud and ballot-rigging in blatant defiance of equity and democratic norms”.

Ali Benflis  stressed that if the April 17 polls were held in all fairness and transparency, he would now the new president-elect of Algeria as he was granted by the electorate over four million votes but fraud took its toll of the people’s will, as he put it.

Ali Benflis further underlined that that the military institution which should have been neutral in last Thursday’s major electoral contest, had adopted a very complacent attitude towards the administration which didn’t waver to put its enormous weight in favour of incumbent Bouteflika in order to make him secure a fourth straight mandate in gross violation of ethics and the laws of the Republic.

Benflis, who had already cited “serious irregularities” across the country on polling day, swiftly refused to recognize Bouteflika’s re-election.

“Recognizing it would be complicit in fraud,” he told a news conference after the results were announced, condemning what he called “an alliance between fraud, suspicious money and the bought media.”

Bouteflika’s victory had been widely expected, with his supporters celebrating in Algiers after polls closed late Thursday, and the press anticipating his re-election on Friday before the results were announced.

It comes a year after Bouteflika suffered a stroke that confined him to hospital for three months.

Meanwhile, Ali Benflis, said earlier in Algiers that in the comings days, he will announce the creation of “a political framework in line with the laws of the Republic.”

He made this statement to the press after a meeting he held with some presidents of parties and associations, and a number of political personalities they supported him.

Ali Benflis, who explained that the name of this “rally, movement or party will be known in the coming days,” said that this framework will be based on “the spirit of the November revolution and the great history of Algeria”.

He added that he will also explain this framework to all those supported him during this presidential election notably “youth who strongly expressed willingness to assume responsibilities (in it).”

“I will do nothing without consulting with this large section of the society,” insisted Benflis.

He further indicated that the meeting also focused on lessons learned from the April 17 election and the evaluation of this election with the presidents of parties and personalities.

Ali Benflis also noted that his initiative remains open to all those who will recognize themselves in his project “he has explained throughout the electoral campaign.”