This is the first elections that have taken place without the spectre of fear hanging over the electorate.
Voting went peacefully and Angolan citizens came out by the numbers to perform their civic duty. From the time the polls opened at 07:00 am, people streamed into the polling stations around the capital where some 33 percent of the national votes will be cast. The process was quick and efficient at each of the polling stations we visited throughout the day.
For most people it took less than a minute... they walked up to the tent or room where they would first show their identity card for the CNE worker to check the card against the electoral roll in the presence of representatives of the various political parties. Eight are standing in this election but the smaller parties may not always have enough volunteers to be in attendance at every polling station.
With their identity confirmed, the voter is then handed a single ballot and instructed on how to fold the paper after putting an x in the box of their choice. The folded vote, with the choice now concealed is then posted into the transparent ballot box. The ballot has the party flag and name and the picture of the first person on their list of candidates.
We toured polling stations from downtown Luanda to Cacuaco, Cazenga and Viana, going around the three most populous municipalities in the capital. At each step, we noted a calm and efficient process. When polls closed at 5:00 pm, substantially all of the areas we had visited were going about their business, still being astutely reviewed by party representatives.
However, one exception remained, "Assembleia de Voto nº 400" in the Sambizanga neighbourhood of the municipality of Cazenga. We saw a large group of young men standing within 100 metres of the tents used as polling stations and as we drew up we saw a couple of them acting aggressively, gesturing and yelling. We approached on foot and found they had been drinking and were now, completely unprovoked, insulting police officers, a woman and two men, posted on duty. Throughout the capital, police on duty near polling stations today were completely unarmed, a measure was taken by the authorities to help instil a sense of trust and avoid any accidents.
Other journalists had also approached to investigate, and as each worked to interview the crowd it became clear that the unruly ones were very drunk. They shouted over each other, stumbled, flung their arms about but once they had yelled their grievances, some then dispersed. In the meantime police reinforcements were on their way. While the national police were on foot and unarmed, the previous evening convoys of Rapid intervention police, known as the ninjas, drove around some parts of Luanda with sirens blaring and lights flashing to demonstrate their readiness for action in the event of any trouble.
The UNITA leader, Adalberto Costa Júnior, and civil society associations had called on people to stay in the area after casting their vote, to watch for any irregularities (votou, sentou). In the three municipalities we toured throughout the day there was no sign of anyone actually doing this (except much later at that one station in Sambizanga) and it showed that despite high levels of discontent with the governing MPLA, most people were content to cast their vote and then go home to wait for the results.
This is the closest contest between the two main parties since Angola´s first election in 1992. What gives this one added significance is that for the first time people are able to pass judgement on the government´s performance. And they are not just judging President Lourenço´s five years in charge but the 47 years that the MPLA has been in power.
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Three final notes.
The first note is notorious. The people already feel that the power belongs to them. And no doubt that in the next presidential term there will be a much more demanding scrutiny. Bureaucratic achievement reports will not suffice. Concrete action is needed that benefits each person.
The second is about the peaceful and orderly manner in which polling day went. The example set by the Angolan people must be taken into account by political actors. We must not be tolerant of intolerance and should fight radicalism.
The third note is the most important. Change is not made with noise and digital projects, but with substantial ideas and programs that point the way to the future.
