The candidate Mirlande Manigat defeat in the second round (31.74%), said yesterday in a document published a few hours before the closure of the Office of the electoral disputes, that she will not challenge the victory of her opponent Michel Martelly, who won the second round of the presidential elections by collecting 67.57% of votes "No, I does not challenge the election, but we protest".

An official of Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) has confirmed that no challenge [presidential candidates] had been filed within the legal deadline provided by the electoral law (72 hours after the publication of results).

In a document presented by the lawyers of the candidate, it is clarified that "Mirlande Manigat will not appear before the Office of electoral disputes, she chooses instead to denounce to the Nation the depravity and villainy of the electoral advisers [...]" In addition, the candidate denounces "the intoxication of a certain national and international community which predicted a possible bloodbath according to the results [...] She hopes, but without much illusion that everyone will assume its responsibilities before history, while wishing the best for Haiti". In this same document the candidate presents a certain number of violation of the electoral law and exhibits her criticism toward the OAS mission "that has not made respected the rules that it had established and enforced in the first round of elections" [?]

Obviously, the candidate has no evidence to support her allegations of fraud against the CEP, allegations widely referred in her statement of last Tuesday http://www.haitilibre.com/article-2684-haiti-elections-mirlande-man... (in french)

Despite this lack of evidence, the candidate who has chosen to appear as a "victim" continues to assert that the presence of CEP, last Sunday at the Vote Tabulation Centre (CTV) was illegal. Another affirmation denied during the briefing of the Minustah yesterday Thursday by the electoral expert Bouah Mathieu Bile which has indicated "that the CTV is a structure which, under Article 174 of the Electoral Law, is under the responsibility of the CEP, It is therefore to them to determine the appropriateness or not of such displacement".

Concerning the allegations of manipulation of votes by the CEP at CTV, the expert noted that within the CTV, there were always representatives of the two candidates, domestic observers and international observers including Minustah and has certified that during their passage the CTV, counselors [of the CEP] did not have access to the tabulation and they could not do any manipulation"

Article By HL/ HaitiLibre