20110116
reuters

KINSHASA (Reuters) - Democratic Republic of Congo's parliament approved controversial voting reforms on Saturday expected to boost incumbent President Joseph Kabila's chances of re-election in November.

A joint sitting of the central African state's lower and upper house backed eight changes to the constitution, including a move to reduce the vote to a single round from two -- meaning the next president can be elected without an absolute majority.

The measures were passed easily after opposition lawmakers boycotted the sitting in protest. Out of 504 that voted, 485 were in favour, eight were against and 11 abstained.

The new rules will mean that whoever gets the highest score in a sole round of voting will become president regardless of their score. Under the two-round system common across much of Africa, the top two must battle it out in a run-off if no one candidate gets an absolute majority in the first round.

Information Minister Lambert Mende said the reform would help ensure a peaceful vote, citing the disputed outcomes of recent African elections, including that in Ivory Coast where two rivals both claim to have won a second-round run-off.

"You know what is going on in Ivory Coast. You know what went on in Kenya and Guinea, and we've profited from all these experiences. And now that we have made it (the reform) I feel that our elections will go very well,' he told Reuters.

"We have not made these changes for Joseph Kabila, we have made them for the Congolese people," he added, dismissing suggestions they favoured the incumbent.