The former President of Botswana, Festus Mogae, will lead the Commonwealth Observer Group (COG) to the April polls in Nigeria, Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma announced today. The parliamentary and presidential elections are due to be held on 2 and 9 April 2011 respectively.
Mr Sharma constituted the Group at the invitation of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of Nigeria.
Speaking in London after constituting the Group, the Secretary-General said: “I would like to thank President Mogae and all the other members of the Group for accepting to undertake this very important role of supporting the strengthening of the democratic process in Nigeria.”
Mr Sharma said the Commonwealth has a long and substantial history of engagement with Nigeria and that it is important that the forthcoming elections are well-organised, credible and peaceful.
“The Commonwealth has walked alongside Nigeria on its democratic journey through the years. We are pleased to be observing these critical elections, and hope the process and the outcome will further strengthen the democratic process in the country.”
The mandate of the Commonwealth Observer Group is to observe the preparations for the election, the polling, the counting and the results process, and the overall electoral environment. It will assess the conduct of the process as a whole and, where appropriate, make recommendations for the future strengthening of the electoral framework in Nigeria.
The Group will determine in its own judgement whether the elections have been conducted according to standards for democratic elections to which Nigeria has committed itself nationally, as well as relevant regional, Commonwealth and other international commitments.
The Group will act impartially and independently, and will conduct itself according to the standards expressed in the International Declaration of Principles for Election Observation, to which the Commonwealth is a signatory.
The Group’s report will be submitted to the Commonwealth Secretary-General, who will in turn send it to the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Independent National Election Commission (INEC), political parties, and eventually to all Commonwealth governments. It will also be made available to the public through the Commonwealth website.
The COG is expected to comprise 13 experienced persons, supported by a team from the Commonwealth Secretariat headed by Mr Amitav Banerji, Director of the Political Affairs Division. It is expected to arrive in Nigeria on 26 March 2011, and to stay until 15 April 2011. The full team is listed below:
HE Mr Festus Mogae
Chair
Former President of Botswana
Dr Zahurul Alam
Governance Expert
Bangladesh
Dr Mrs Elizabeth Tamajong
Politician
Cameroon
Ms Thandeka Percival
Youth Representative
Guyana
Ms Marjorie Walla
Voter Education Expert
Kenya
Mrs Limakatso Mokhothu
Electoral Commissioner
Lesotho
Mr Mukhtar Ahmed Ali
Executive Director, Domestic Observer Group
Pakistan
Mr Andrew S Trawen, CMG, MBE
Electoral Commissioner
Papua New Guinea
Ms Rene Baptise, LEC, MP
Barrister & Former Minister
St Vincent and the Grenadines
Dr Mrs Nemata Majeks-Walker
Gender Expert
Sierra Leone
Mr Hanif Vally
Human Rights Expert
South Africa
Professor Goretti Nassanga
Media Expert
Uganda
Mr Stuart Mole CVO, OBE
Academic
United Kingdom
