Election Runoff: Jega meets ECOWAS Observers, others in Liberia
Head of the ECOWAS Electoral Observation Mission (EOM), Prof. Attahiru Jega, who arrived in Monrovia, Liberia on Thursday 9 November 2023, met with some actors and stakeholders involved in the Presidential Runoff Election. The election is scheduled to be held on Tuesday 14 November 2023.
On Friday, November 10, 2023, Prof. Jega met successively with Mr. Frank Musa Dean Jr, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Liberia, Mrs. Davidetta Browne-Lansanah, President of the National Electoral Commission (NEC), some civil society actors, and the ECOWAS Technical Team.
In his meetings with these actors, Jega discussed the preparation for the polls and challenges for a peaceful, free, transparent, and credible electoral process.
On the morning of Saturday, November 11, 2023, Prof. Attahiru Jega met with ECOWAS ShortTerm Observers in the presence of Dr. Abdel-Fatau Musah, ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Mr. Abdou Kolley, Director of the Cabinet of the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Ambassador Josephine NKRUMAH, ECOWAS Resident Representative in Liberia, members of ECOWAS Parliament, member of the ECOWAS Permanent Representative Committee and member of the ECOWAS Council of Wise.
Addressing the ECOWAS observers, Prof Jega urged them to carry out their tasks within the confines of the extant electoral legal frameworks and in accordance with international standards. He also urged them to avoid interfering in the electoral process and to use the skills and tools acquired through their training. Finally, he asked them to make possible recommendations to improve the electoral process and the ECOWAS election observation mission.
Ambassador Josephine Nkrumah, while addressing the observers earlier, described the current political and electoral context under which the polls will be held. She also gave a background on the electoral campaign atmosphere ahead of the polls. She further briefed the observers on the NEC’s deployment plan of electoral materials and security arrangements for forces on the ground.
Dr Abdel-Fatau Musah, Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security of ECOWAS, expressed satisfaction with the high profile of ECOWAS Electoral Mission observers. While enjoining them to be objective and impartial in the course of the Mission, he urged the observers to submit timely reports from their observations in the field to enrich the overall report of the Mission.
