ECOWAS Network Of Electoral Commissions (ECONEC) said the findings and recommendations on the conduct of Nigeria’s 2023 general elections will be the benchmark to improve the conduct of elections in West African subregion.
Head of ECONEC, Mrs. Davidetta Browne-lansanah, who led other heads of electoral bodies in ECOWAS sub-region, on a post-election follow-up/Needs Assessment Mission to Nigeria, said recommendations will situate individual election management bodies.
Browne-lansanah who is also Chairperson of the National Elections Commission of Liberia, explained that the purpose of the visit to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was to understudy the implementations of the recommendations.
“We anticipate that during our engagement, we may be able to understand reasons for some of the issues that came out of the 2023 elections and how INEC was able to navigate in a way that it has found answers to those challenges that abound during the 2023 elections,” she stated.
Browne-lansanah said ECONEC viewed the mission as a lesson learned, “not just for INEC Nigeria, but also for our own institutions, our own election management bodies.
“We want to learn what happened, so that we use your expertise in dealing with the problems and challenges to better situate our individual election management bodies and processes.”
According to her, the problems or challenges faced by any election management body are often faced by election management bodies throughout our region.
She commended INEC for the assistance given to the National Elections Commission of Liberia, disclosing that INEC supported the Liberia commission through sharing of materials.
Browne-lansanah noted INEC’s intervention assisted her commission to have an ICT room, basically supported by your efforts.
Said she, “through ECONEC and its principles and ideals, Nigeria actually responded to our needs.
“I will say that the mission here is one that is determined to learn.”
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed that ECOWAS send election observation missions to monitor the 2023 general elections, which made their findings and recommendations.
Prof. Yakubu added that they also deploy follow-up missions on the implementation of their recommendations.
“The commission is glad that ECOWAS, which deployed both long-term and short-term EOM, recognises that election is a multi-stakeholder responsibility,” he said.
He disclosed that 37 recommendations were made by election mission observations for the Nigeria’s 2023 general elections, out of which 13 were addressed to INEC while 24 require action by other institutions and stakeholders such as the National Assembly, the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), etc.
“Of the 13 observations specifically addressed to INEC, the commission has considered all the recommendations that require administrative action to implement while waiting for the conclusion of the ongoing legal review by the National Assembly on aspects of the recommendations that require legislative intervention.
“The commission has prepared a detailed response on each of the 13 observations, most of which are already contained in our 142 recommendations for electoral reform which resulted from wide-ranging consultations with critical institutions and stakeholders,” Prof. Yakubu explained.
