Delays marred Angola's first vote in 16 years on Friday, a parliamentary election in which the ruling party is expected to extend its hold of more than three decades in the oil-rich African nation, Reuters reported. Long queues formed in the capital Luanda, considered a stronghold of the governing MPLA, hours before the polls opened at 7 a.m. (0600 GMT). But voters and election observers complained of disorganisation. Scores of polling stations failed to open on time, while others remained closed several hours after voting began. The poll is the first since 1992 and is seen largely as a race between the MPLA and UNITA. Official results are not expected for at least a week. An estimated 8.3 million people are registered to vote. Angola's last election ended in disaster in 1992 when UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi withdrew from the second round of a presidential poll after accusing MPLA leader Jose Eduardo dos Santos of cheating his way to victory. Savimbi then led his supporters back into the bush where the rebel group resumed a civil war against the government. An estimated half a million people died in the 27-year conflict, which ended after Savimbi was killed in an ambush in 2002.
