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Sudan Referendum Commission to Announce Final Results Monday

   Peter Clottey  February 06, 2011
   Southern Sudanese celebrate the announcement of preliminary referendum
   results in the southern capital of Juba, January 30, 2011.

Photo: AP

   Southern Sudanese celebrate the announcement of preliminary referendum
   results in the southern capital of Juba, January 30, 2011.

   An official of South Sudanâs Referendum Commission said senior members
   of  the  organization  are  scheduled  to  meet  President Omar Hassan
   al-Bashir  and his cabinet in the capital, Khartoum, before announcing
   the outcome of the landmark referendum late Monday.

   Commission spokesman George Benjamin told VOA the countryâs High Court
   paved  the  way  for  the  commission  to  announce the outcome of the
   referendum  after  notifying the organization that there were no legal
   challenges to the results of the week-long vote.

   âThe  final results of the southern Sudan referendum will be announced
   today,  the  7^th  of February, in Khartoum at 7:30 in the evening. It
   will be attended by dignitaries, members of the government of southern
   Sudan  and of the federal government, representatives of the U.N., and
   international  agencies,  the  African  Union  the Arab League and all
   other regional and local agencies in the Sudan,â said Benjamin.

   He  also  denied  previous  reports  that  opponents of the referendum
   commissionâs  work are legally challenging the outcome of the landmark
   vote.

   âNobody challenged the outcome of the referendum. In fact, we received
   an  official  notification  from the High Court telling the commission
   that  they  have  not  received  any complaints from anybody, from any
   quarters,  at  the  time  given  for  that purpose, and that, now, the
   commission  can go ahead to complete the rest of the processes and the
   rest of the measures that are left,â said Benjamin.

   âSo  now, clearly and legally, the ground has been cleared by the High
   Court. Nobody went to it, nobody raised any complaints and, therefore,
   we  will  just  go  ahead to declare the results immediately, and this
   will be the final results of the referendum.â

   Before  the  week-long  vote,  concerned  groups  from  southern Sudan
   petitioned  the  Constitutional Court to dissolve the commission after
   claiming  they  possess  documented evidence showing violations during
   the voter registration.

   The groups also claim the violations will undermine the credibility of
   both  the  voters  list  and the January referendum. The court did not
   officially begin investigations into the allegations and, later, threw
   out the charges.

   Preliminary  results  released  so  far  by  the  commission  show  an
   overwhelming number of southerners chose south Sudanâs separation over
   the countryâs unity.

   Benjamin  said his commission is satisfied with its work in organizing
   what poll observers describe as a credible, free and fair referendum.

   âThe commission will continue to work until July this year when (there
   is)  a declaration of a new state. That will be the time that the life
   of  the  Southern  Sudan  Referendum  Commission  will come to an end.
   Between  now and July, the commission will be doing many other things,
   will  be  compiling reports, will be making evaluation of its work and
   will  report to both the governments in southern Sudan and in Khartoum
   for that purpose.â

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