In response to an invitation by the Nigerian government, the European Union (EU) has deployed an Election Observation Mission (EOM) to the Presidential, Parliamentary, Gubernatorial and State Assembly elections to be held on 14 and 28 February respectively.
Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, appointed Mr. Santiago Fisas Ayxelà, a member of the European Parliament as chief observer. He will meet relevant Nigerian stakeholders next week.
The EU called on all stakeholders to work toward transparent and credible elections and to reject violence. Under the leadership of Fisas, the EU- EOM will certainly contribute to the electoral processes.
Early stages of the election process have been followed closely by the EU – EOM. An advance team, deployed in November and December, assessed the political parties’ primaries and voter registration. Also eight election analysts and 30 long-term observers will be deployed across the country. A delegation of the European Parliament and Nigeria-based EU diplomats will reinforce the mission on election days.
The EOM will remain in Nigeria until the electoral process is completed, to provide help for an in depth-assessment of the process. The EU EOM will issue a preliminary statement shortly after each election’s day and a final report with recommendations at a later stage.
The EU has been supporting electoral processes in Nigeria since 2003. The mission complements the European Union’s support to the Nigerian election authorities and civil society.
Source: http://eeas.europa.eu/statements-eeas/2015/150122_02_en.htm
