This archive report was first published on 16 August 2021.
On Saturday, Sao Tome and Principe President Evaristo Carvalho was hospitalised due to an illness, according to local media. He is currently admitted to Dr Ayres de Menezes Hospital.
VOA radio quoted sources saying that the head of state underwent surgery for an umbilical hernia.
The president's hospitalisation comes at a critical time for the country, which is experiencing an electoral crisis due to the delay in holding the second round of the presidential elections.
President Carvalho is not a candidate and his term ends on September 3, 2021.
Following a request for a recount of votes in the first round by the current president of the national assembly, Delfim Neves, who is a candidate, the country's Parliament has yet to set a new date for the second round of the presidential poll.
The largest opposition party, ADI, which supports Carlos Vila Nova, the candidate with the most votes in the first round of presidential elections held on July 18, accuses Delfim Neves, who came in third, of planning a coup to temporarily assume the presidency and indefinitely postpone the conclusion of the electoral process.
