Guinea Bissau Junta Won't Hold Elections For Two Years

The military junta that seized control of Guinea-Bissau last week said on Thursday that they will hand over power to civilian government in two years.

With the United Nations and the Economic Community Of West African States already pushing strongly for the return of constitutional order, the extended timeline isn't likely to appease international critics like the African Union, which has already suspended Guinea-Bissau's membership.

But the junta, which overthrew the government before the second round of presidential elections could be held on April 29, believes that it will take two years to organize new elections, and some opposition parties have already agreed to the prolonged schedule.

This will allow us to peacefully organize voter registration in a biometric format, and to hold legislative and presidential elections simultaneously, Artur Sanha, a spokesman for the political parties, told the Associated Press.

However, it could also have a devastating impact on Guinea-Bissau since the World Bank and the African Development Bank have suspended development programs in the country and won't provide anything but emergency assistance until there is a speedy resolution of the crisis, the BBC reported.

The tiny West African nation is dependent on foreign aid and around 70 percent of its people live below the poverty line.

With aid gone and Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Jr. detained in a secret location, drug money might become the main funding source for the military rulers. The 88 islands off the coast of Guinea-Bissau are a prime drug transit point between South American and Europe, and some believe that last week's coup was an attempt to assure that the civilian government didn't interfere with narcotics trafficking.

The junta said that they had to overthrow Gomes because he signed a deal that permitted Angola to attack Guinea-Bissau.