Togo's president 'tells rivals to accept defeat'

Togo's President Faure Gnassingbé has told his rivals to accept preliminary election results showing he has won by a landslide, the AFP news agency reports.

Some Togolese worry that a contested outcome could lead to political violence, the agency adds.

Provisional results by the electoral commission showed that Mr Gnassingbé - in power since 2005 - had received 72% of the vote, compared with about 18% for opposition leader Agbéyomé Kodjo.

At least three Togolese opposition candidates in the presidential election have said the vote was marred by fraud.

President Gnassingbé will secure a fourth term if the results are confirmed. He took office after the death of his father, who ruled for 88 years.

"To my unlucky adversaries, I would like to tell them, this is the game of democracy. Let's stop improvising, stop inventing imaginary numbers and submit to the judgement of the Togolese people," President Gnassingbé was quoted as saying while addressing his supporters in the capital, Lomé.