Ahead of the 2023 General Elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has extended invitations to international organisations interested in observing Nigeria’s polls, stressing that election body is committed to free, fair and credible elections driven by technology.
Chairman of the Commission, Professor Mamood Yakubu, who announced this on Monday when he received in audience a delegation of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Pre-Election Fact Finding Mission to Nigeria said that the invitation was a demonstration of INEC’s openness and ritual to receive international observers.
Prof. Yakubu also told the delegation led by Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, former Chairman of the Electoral Commission of Ghana, that Election Observation is an important part of ensuring transparency and credibility in elections.
He said that the Commission had always benefited from the insight of election observation missions and therefore assured the ECOWAS team that Nigeria 2023 general elections would be technology driven.
The INEC Chairman further said; “You are here on fact-finding, we will hear from you what you have found so far, which will help us in concluding our preparations for the election. And I look forward to receive any report at the end of the process in February and March, so that we can learn even more from the inside.
“The 2023 general election in Nigeria will be driven by technology not only as a matter of legal requirement, but also as a matter of course, for us in the commission.
“So, I want to assure the ECOWAS team that we are committed to delivering a credible election in the next four months and a few days, which will be Nigeria’s seventh successive elections, since the restoration of democracy in 1999,” he said.
The INEC Chairman while commending ECOWAS for its commitment to credible elections in Nigeria, said it was the first to arrive Nigeria for the election, adding that ECOWAS has demonstrated the seriousness and commitment to ensuring that Nigeria get right electorally in the region in the next few weeks.
Yakubu also stressed the need to restore democratic government in all West African countries including Mali, Burkina and Guinea.
Earlier, leader of the delegation, Dr Remi Ajibewa, said they were in Nigeria for fact finding ahead of the country’s 2023 general elections in line with ECOWAS Supplementary Protocol 2021 to observe elections in Nigeria.
Ajibewa, who is the Director of Political Affairs of ECOWAS Commission, noted that Article 11, 12 and 13 of the protocol mandated the commission to deploy electoral fact-finding mission to every member states of ECOWAS that were about to conduct election, especially presidential election.
According to him; “And this is why we are here and in the cause of our being here in Nigeria, there will be visit first to ECOWAS Commission, which we have done that is to brief the head of mission.
“Then, to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where we have been this morning, then the Inspector-General of Police, then some civil societies and INEC.
“Basically, the reason why we normally do that is that we believe INEC is our friend, so, that’s some of the things that we’ve had, we also put it across to them, areas where discussion.
“So in the course we’ll also be visiting the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria. We will be visiting the resident electoral commissioners. We will be visiting the security agencies. We will be visiting the traditional and religious leaders.’’
“We will be visiting the civil society, having audience our discussion with them, all to know the preparedness of these stakeholders we are meeting.
“But in particular, we will not miss out the political parties, given the fact that they constitute the sort of important role.
“Then in the course we’ll be meeting the media, the Bar Association, the courts as well because of their role” he said
Ajibewa further said that ECOWAS look forward to successful and credible elections in West Africa countries especially Nigeria in 2023 given the leadership role the country plays in the sub region.
