Gabon's Constitutional Court has rejected an opposition challenge to the results of an August 27 election won by incumbent President Ali Bongo, whose family has ruled the central African country for nearly a half century.
The decision raises the prospect of a repeat of the violence that followed the announcement earlier this month of a narrow victory for Bongo over opposition leader Jean Ping.
In his petition to the court, Ping, who has claimed he won the election, alleged fraud in Haut-Ogooue province, where Bongo won 95 per cent on a turnout of 99.9 per cent. He had called for a recount of votes there.
The court refused to accept copies of vote tally sheets provided as evidence by Ping, many of which it said were illegible.
Bongo's allies submitted evidence to the court rejecting Ping's allegations and countering that the opposition leader had himself orchestrated vote fraud.
The court cancelled votes in 21 constituencies in the capital Libreville, but Bongo still won the vote with 50.66 percent of ballots cast.
