El Tijani el Sisi head of Darfur Regional Authority (DRA) and Chairman of Liberation and Justice Movement acknowledged that there is low turnout on the first day of voting in the Darfur Referendum which began yesterday.
The referendum is meant to allow citizens of Darfur to determine whether the region should keep its five states or unite as one entity with a semi-autonomous administration, as mandated by the Doha Document for peace in Darfur signed by the Sudanese government and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM).
el Sisi explained that the low turnout is because it is the first day of voting, saying the turnout may increase.
“Turnout of voting is low in some polling centers but it is the first day. We are expecting the citizens to go to vote,” he said. “The process is still going on and we are now in Abushok seeing there is sense of enthusiasm among the citizens. We hope it will continue like that.”
File photo: Election officials during voting in the South Sudan Referendum in 2011. Several polling stations for the vote were open for Southerners in Darfur (Credit: UNAMID)