ANTANANARIVO - Madagascar has attracted global attention as it prepares to hold the much-awaited presidential election on October 25. Over the recent days, journalists from various leading global media corporations have been camping to cover the unfolding events in the Indian Ocean Island. Around 5,000 international and national observers – a number never recorded since the first ever-largest electoral mission monitors have also jetted into the country. Apart from the national consortium, the EU, the African Union (AU), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Francophone International Organisation (OIF), and the Indian Ocean Commission (COI) have each hired observers to closely monitor the electoral process. The AU observers were the first to give their views over the pre-election situation while their counterparts from the West plan to proceed to preliminary declaration two days after the poll. “There was an appeased political climate during the campaign,” Mr Issanga Kampos, the head of the AU electoral observation mission, said at a press conference held on Monday.Nonetheless, a problem has persisted concerning the distribution of some electoral materials and documents. The country’s electoral agency (CENI-T), has however remained confident saying that all things will be done in time. CENI-T has also promised to publish provisional results within 10 days after the polls. The upcoming election could be historic for at least one major reason. It was meant to end the long-running political crisis following the 2009 military-backed coup and restore constitutional order in Madagascar. Agencies
