United States backs ECOWAS, foreign observers on polls postponement
*Don’t shift elections again, it warns
Doosuur Iwambe -Abuja
The United States embassy in Nigeria has said that its home government fully supports the joint statement by the heads of the ECOWAS and other international election observation missions on the postponement of the February 16 and March 6 general elections. In a statement made available to newsmen on Sunday, the US stated that “we join in encouraging all Nigerians to ensure free, fair, peaceful and credible elections by supporting the Independent National Electoral Commission while it finalises electoral preparations this week and by voting in peace together on February 23.” In a joint statement on Saturday, international election observers urged the INEC to adhere to the new dates it fixed for the polls conduct and ensure free and fair elections. Meanwhile, foreign observers have called on the INEC to adhere to the new dates it fixed for the conduct of the general elections. The Transition Monitoring Group, Human and Environmental Development Agenda and the Election Observation Platform have said elections postponement constitute a threat to the integrity of the nation’s electoral system. The observers in their joint statement on the postponement also called on the electoral commission to inform Nigerians regularly about the preparations for the elections. The statement said: “We, the heads of the international election observation missions and the United Nations present in Nigeria, have taken note of the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission to postpone the 2019 general elections due to logistical and operational challenges. “While we note that this decision has caused disappointment for many, we call on all Nigerians to continue to remain calm and supportive of the electoral process as INEC works to implement its new timeline. “We urge INEC to use this time to finalise all preparations and ensure that the new election dates are strictly adhere to.” In a statement, CISLAC criticised INEC for the logistical problems that marred the distribution of electoral materials before the postponement.
