Faustin Twagiramungu, the main opposition candidate in yesterday's presidential election in Rwanda has refused to accept the results of the poll if incumbent President Paul Kagame is declared winner, his spokesperson said.

"One can only contest the results," Ismael Mbonigaba said.

"There was no transparency. Some people were forced to vote Kagame".

Rwanda's national electoral commission was due to announce the preliminary results for the poll - the first multi-party election since the country's 1962 independence from Belgium - at about 21:00 GMT.

But already supporters of Kagame, the favourite to win the election, were celebrating in the Amahoro stadium in the capital Kigali.

"There can be no doubt about Kagame's winning given the climate in which polling took place," Mbonigaba said.

"Kagame prepared the ground and he had every conceivable means to disrupt our campaign". – Sapa-AFP.