Sassou Nguesso tipped to win

AT THE age of 82 and after more than 40 years in power, Denis Sassou Nguesso is the clear favourite to win Sunday’s presidential election in Congo-Brazzaville.

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With the opposition divided, sidelined and largely absent, observers say voter turnout could slump to a record low in the oil-rich but impoverished central African country.

Sassou Nguesso ranks as one of Africa's longest-serving leaders, along with Equatorial Guinea’s Teodoro Obiang Nguema and Cameroonian President Paul Biya.

“Honestly, I don't see the point of voting on March 15. Whether I vote or not, we'll have the same winner,” said Cyril Massamba, who lives in the capital Brazzaville.

Sassou Nguesso, a career military officer, first ied Congo under a one-party system from 1979 to 1992 before losing the first multiparty elections to former prime minister Pascal Lis-souba, whom Sassou Nguesso then overthrew in a civil war in 1997.

He has maintained a firm grip over the former French colony, which gained independence in 1960 and has traditionally maintained close ties with both France and Russia.