afrol News, 18 March - The United Nations Security Council has expressed concerns over the delayed Cote d’Ivoire elections.

According to the Security Council, the much-delayed presidential elections as well as reunification are the key issues for Côte d'Ivoire, further pleading for all sectors to work towards the polls.

"The members of the Security Council recalled their previous statements and expressed their concern at the continuing delays in the electoral process since January 2010," said a statement read out to the press by Ambassador Emmanuel Issoze-Ngondet of Gabon.

The council urged the Ivorian stakeholders to revive this process without delay and to remain within the framework of the Ouagadougou Political Agreement and of the previous peace agreements endorsed by the Security Council.

Under the Ouagadougou Political Agreement with the African Union, the Ivorian presidential elections should be held by May 2010.

Côte d’Ivoire, which became split by civil war in 2002 into a rebel-held north and Government-controlled south, was supposed to hold the elections as far back as 2005. The polls have been repeatedly postponed, most recently from 29 November last year to this March. A new date has not yet been set.

Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Cote d' Ivoire, Y.J. Choi said the prospect for elections before May is not encouraging.

The Security Council reiterated its calls for all Ivorian stakeholders to fully support the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to complete the final voters list in the coming weeks.

They stressed that the provisional list of 5.3 million voters has been supported by the members of the Permanent Consultative Framework, certified by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and welcomed by the Security Council.

Last month, Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo dissolved the government and the IEC, which he accused of fraudulently adding more than 400,000 names to the electoral roll. The move cast doubt on when the long-delayed elections would occur.

Top UN officials have repeatedly called on the Ivorian parties to resolve the challenges related to the delayed elections through dialogue, within the framework of the Ouagadougou Peace Agreements, the 2007 blueprint for political reconciliation forged in the capital of neighbouring Burkina Faso.

By staff writer

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