“Out of the 307 official results, the ruling EPRDF has secured 139 seats followed by the two major oppositions CUD, 93 and UEDF 42 seats respectively,” according to NEB.

Reacting to the controversial announcement, United Ethiopian Democratic Forces (UEDF) Vice President Beyene Petros told the Reporter newspaper his party would not recognize the latest NEB results before documented cases of widespread fraud were settled for good.

Gizachew Shiferaw of Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), the opposition whose victory in the country was epitomized by sweeping all 23 parliamentary seats in the 4-million-strong metropolitan Addis, also said his party would only wait for the final results that would come after vote-rigging charges were resolved and had the acceptance of the parties concerned.

In an earlier statement, observers from the European Union had warned the trickle of results was threatening the electoral process. “These practices, taken as a whole, are seriously undermining the transparency and fairness of the elections. They also risk increasing the scope for manipulation and consequently putting in doubt public confidence in the process.”

NEB was the creation of Meles Zenaw in the mid-‘90s, and observers see it as one arm of the government.