Opposition leader calls for recount of presidential vote

Tanzanian presidential candidate and opposition leader Edward Lowassa on Wednesday called for a recount of Sunday's presidential poll, saying he would not accept the result because of voting irregularities.

"We want the National Electoral Commission (NEC) to immediately halt the announcement of results of the presidential election," Lowassa, who leads the Ukawa opposition coalition, told a news conference in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam.

"We demand that NEC should do a verification of the results and recount the votes," he said.

The NEC had said it would announce the winner of the vote on Thursday, with preliminary results showing John Magufuli, candidate for the ruling CCM party, ahead of Lowassa.