DR Congo court confirms Tshisekedi's poll victory

The Constitutional Court in the Democratic Republic of Congo has rejected two challenges to the results of a last month's contested presidential election.

The court said incumbent President Felix Tshisekedi had indeed received 73% of the vote.

The validation comes despite independent observers reporting widespread irregularities during the 20 December vote.

The poll was also marred by several logistical problems, which the opposition alleged were part of a deliberate plan to rig the results in favour of Mr Tshisekedi.

Only one opposition candidate out of 18 took the matter to court. Others, including the runner-up, Moïse Katumbi, refused to mount a legal challenge after questioning the independence of the judiciary.

The Constitutional Court ruled on Tuesday that reported irregularities could not have impacted the overall result because there was such a big gap between the incumbent president and Mr Katumbi, who won around 18% of votes.

The verdict paves the way for Mr Tshisekedi to be sworn in for a second term on 20 January.