#YIAGA

[akeliciousmedia]

Ondo Election Marred by Vote Buying, Yiaga Africa's Paul James Claims

Paul James, Yiaga Africa’s election programme manager, has raised concerns over alleged vote buying in the ongoing Ondo State governorship election. Speaking on Arise TV on Saturday, James disclosed that politicians had been distributing money, food items, and fertilisers to voters during the election period.“We saw glimpses of vote buying in the buildup to the election, where politicians, in…

[destkelamedia]

APC Urges Yiaga Africa to Cease Challenging Edo Election Results

[tracknews1]

#Edo Decides: YIAGA Confirms Vote Buying by PDP, APC Agents

Yiaga Africa has confirmed the spate of voting buying allegedly perpertrated by agents of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressive Congress (APC) at the ongoing gubernatorial election in Edo state. This was disclosed at a Press briefing over the electoral body’s observation so far. Yiaga, in a post on their official X handle, alleged observing vote buying act carried out by the…

[thxnews]

Liberia Elections 2023: Democracy in Action

  A Nation's Democratic Exercise

Liberia, a nation steeped in history, is set to embark on a significant democratic journey this Tuesday, October 10, 2023. Over 2.4 million voters, with an equal gender balance, will cast their ballots to elect not only their President but also fifteen Senators and seventy-three members of the House of Representatives. In this diverse electoral landscape, 1,025 candidates, including 2 women, have been deemed eligible to vie for various positions, setting the stage for a momentous day in Liberian democracy.  

Casting Votes Across the Nation

With an extensive network of polling stations numbering 5,890, strategically spread across Liberia's 15 counties, citizens are gearing up to exercise their fundamental right to vote. Consequently, the elections hold the promise of being a true reflection of the nation's aspirations for a brighter future.   ECOWAS Observers on the Ground In the early hours of the day, a distinguished delegation led by Prof. Attahiru JEGA, head of the Electoral Observation Mission (EOM) deployed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), made their presence felt. Accompanied by key figures such as Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musah, Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace, and Security, and H.E. Ambassador Josephine NKRUMA, ECOWAS Resident Representative to Liberia, the delegation visited several voting centers and polling stations in Monrovia, the nation's capital. Their mission: to closely observe the opening and voting process of the elections.   On-the-Ground Assessment The ECOWAS delegation's journey took them to various polling stations, including Matilda Newport High School and William V.S Tubman Silver Jubilee Elem. & Jr. High School. They also visited situation rooms representing youth, women, civil society, and ECOWAS, where they received comprehensive briefings on the intricacies of voting operations.   Democracy in Action In the afternoon, Prof. Attahiru JEGA and his team ventured to polling stations such as the West Point Administrative Building, Police Station, Central Mosque Elementary School, Clara Town Central School, and Famina Islamic School, among others. What they found was a testament to the dedication of Liberian citizens, with a high voter turnout and individuals eagerly waiting to fulfill their civic duty.   A Call for Peace and Tolerance Assessing the day's events and scrutinizing the conduct of the elections based on reports from ECOWAS observation teams, Prof. Attahiru JEGA observed that the polls began promptly with no significant incidents reported. He commended the serene and well-organized atmosphere prevalent at the various voting centers. In his plea to Liberians, he encouraged them to sustain this spirit and enable the National Elections Commission (NEC) to effectively supervise the voting process. He underscored the paramount importance of fostering a climate of peace, tolerance, and consensus during this crucial period.  

International Observers Bear Witness

About 8,441 national and international observers have received accreditation from the National Electoral Commission, representing entities such as ECOWAS, the African Union (AU), the European Union, WANEP, Yiaga Africa, the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA), the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions (RESEAO/ECONEC), and the Association of Women and Liberian Civil Society.  

Awaiting the ECOWAS Mission's Report

Following the compilation of reports from the 120 observers deployed by ECOWAS, Prof. Attahiru JEGA, the head of the ECOWAS Electoral Mission, is scheduled to hold a press conference. This will provide a comprehensive overview of the electoral process and its outcome, shedding light on this historic day for Liberia and its democratic future.   Sources: THX News & ECOWAS. Read the full article

[hardynwa]

5.4m voters registered for Kogi, Imo, Bayelsa polls — INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission said over 5.4 million Nigerians are on the voter register for the November 11 Governorship Elections in Kogi, Imo and Bayelsa states. INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun made this known in a statement on Tuesday. “The Commission held its regular meeting today, Tuesday, October 10, 2023, and, among other issues, reviewed preparations for the off-cycle Governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi States. “For the forthcoming elections, there are 1,056 862 registered voters in Bayelsa State; 2,419,922 in Imo State; and 1,932,654 in Kogi State, making a combined total of 5,409,438 registered voters for the three States,” Olumekun noted. He said soft copies of the complete register of voters for each State will be presented to the political parties participating in the elections. The National commissioner continued, “For emphasis, 16 political parties are sponsoring candidates in Bayelsa State, 17 in Imo State and all the 18 parties in Kogi State. “State Chairmen of political parties or their designated representatives are invited to attend the event which will take place at the Collation Centres in the State Headquarters of the Commission in Lokoja, Owerri and Yenagoa on Thursday 12th October 2023 at 10.00 am”. Olumekun added that in furtherance of INEC’s commitment to deepen the deployment of technology for voter accreditation and result management, the Commission has finalized preparations for mock accreditation of voters in the three States to test-run the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System and upload of polling unit results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal. “The list of designated polling units for each State has already been uploaded to our website and social media platforms. “Lessons learnt from the exercise will be taken into consideration to ensure the seamless deployment of both the BVAS and IReV on Election Day. This is strictly a test run and not the actual election. “Once again, the commission appeals to registered voters in the selected polling units to turn up with their Permanent Voters Cards for the exercise”, he stated. Furthermore, the commission has accredited 119 domestic and eight foreign observers for the November 11 governorship elections. Foreign observers include the British High Commission, European Union, High Commission of Canada, International Foundation for Electoral Systems, National Democratic Institute, Pan African Women Projects, United States Embassy, Abuja, and African Union Development Agency. Some of the domestic observers include the Center for Citizens with Disability, the National Orientation Agency, the Yiaga African Initiative, the Police Service Commission, Human Life Protection Advocacy Initiative, among others. Read the full article

[mozambiquetribune]

Yiaga Africa seeks alternative means of voter identification during elections

http://dlvr.it/Ssvv7C

[mauritaniatribune]

EU, Yiaga Africa urges young parliamentarians to deepen democracy

http://dlvr.it/SrkPWs

[liberiawire]

EU, Yiaga Africa urges young parliamentarians to deepen democracy

http://dlvr.it/Srhw1J

[carnewsgazette]

EU, Yiaga Africa urges young parliamentarians to deepen democracy

http://dlvr.it/Srhnsc

[premimtimes]

#NigeriaDecides2023: Yiaga says INEC violated own guidelines, calls for probe

http://dlvr.it/SkDRB4

[onitshagra]

Anambra election over, time to hold Chukwuma Soludo, others accountable - YIAGA

Anambra election over, time to hold Chukwuma Soludo, others accountable – YIAGA

Independent election observer group, Yiaga Africa has decried increasing voter apathy that had characterized elections in Anambra state. Board member of the group, Ezenwa Nwagwu stated this in Awka during a post-election reflection meeting with leaders of Civil Society Organizations. He said the ugly trend was not necessarily ocassioned by insecurity that had always heralded elections in the…

[afriupdatenews]

CHRICED, YIAGA, others flay CBN’s clampdown on protesters’ accounts

CHRICED, YIAGA, others flay CBN’s clampdown on protesters’ accounts

FCT inaugurates compensation committee

The Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED) has condemned the state-sanctioned attacks aimed at silencing critical citizens’ voices, especially in the wake of the EndSARS protests.

The Executive Director, Dr. Ibrahim Zikirullahi, yesterday described the development as an attempt by the government to further muzzle voices demanding an…

[hardynwa]

Imo, Kogi, Bayelsa guber polls must instil confidence in electoral process, says EU

The European Union (EU) has said the November 11 Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi State governorship polls must be conducted in a way that instils public confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process. It said there were some positives in the just concluded general elections but added there were also issues that needed to be addressed. EU Programme Manager for Democracy and Rule of Law, Laolu Olawumi, disclosed this at the end of a two-day retreat for the EU-SDGN cohort in Lagos, yesterday. The EU, through its Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN), backs institutions of government and supports, in particular, the Nigerian electoral process. It provides funding and technical support to targeted beneficiaries. Six EU-SDGN component areas include: Support to INEC; Support to the National Assembly and the Judiciary; Support to Political Parties; Support to Media; Support to Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities and Support to Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). Olawumi, observed that the retreat assessed interventions of the cohort in the last 12 months, with a view to understand what worked and what didn’t work, identify challenges encountered, and chart better ways to address them. While stating that it is important to introspect on the just concluded elections, she urged the EU-SDGN cohort not to lose sight of states, like Kogi, Bayelsa and Imo, which will be having elections in just over 100 days. She restated EU’s commitment towards engendering and strengthening democratic governance in the country. She said: “Over the last 12 months, we have had an intense work plan where different members of the EU-SDGN cohort have been delivering several activities and technical support to critical stakeholders that we have jointly identified. “The retreat, therefore, sought to see whether the interventions we planned for the next couple of months would help us address the challenges we have seen in the period leading to the elections, and the immediate aftermath of the election.” She explained that the retreat created opportunity for all partners to discuss their intervention areas, the precise actions they undertook during the elections, and what the cohort considers critical issues that need to be addressed. Members of the EU-SDGN cohort include: DAI Global, Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), Yiaga Africa, Kukah Centre, International Press Centre (IPC), Institute for Media and Society (IMS), Nigerian Women Trust Fund (NWTF), ElectHER, TAF Africa, National Peace Committee, SOS Children, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Justice, Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), Justice Development and Peace Initiative, and Justice, Development and Peace Movement. Read the full article

[omokoshaban]

Edo poll: Yiaga deployed 543 observers to all 18 local govt of Edo State, said, we are fully ready

Edo poll: Yiaga deployed 543 observers to all 18 local govt of Edo State, said, we are fully ready

Yiaga Africa

With six days left for the Edo governorship election, an election observer, Yiaga Africa, Sunday, expressed readiness by building the capacity of 543 observers that would be deployed to all 18 Local Government Areas of Edo State.

This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Executive Director, Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo, which explained that the training tagged; Election…

[mauritaniatribune]

Election: Yiaga Africa charges INEC on tackling logistics, delays

http://dlvr.it/Sl3Y9m

[naijanotes]

New Post has been published on https://naijanotes.net/the-real-reason-presidency-welcomes-eu-report-on-nigeria-2019-election/

The Real Reason Presidency Welcomes EU Report On Nigeria 2019 Election

The Presidency has reacted to the EU Report On Nigeria 2019 Election, promising to analyse it fully & act on the recommendations.

This was contained in statement released by the Presidency and made available to the Media on Saturday.

The Statement gave details of the EU report and why the Presidency believed the report was a true reflection of the state of the 2019 presidential election, noting that the report has proved that the election of President Muhammadu Buhari represented the will of Nigerians.

The Presidency noted:

“This is further proof that the polls reflected the overall will of Nigerians, and that the world is solidly behind the election of President Muhammadu Buhari for a second term. “

The Statement further said that by inviting the EU observers to the country to monitor the elections in the first instance, it showed that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari meant well for the country and demonstrated the commitment of the administration to pure democratic process.

The statement read:

“This was a clear indication of the administration’s good intentions, commitment to a pure democratic process, and desire to improve for the next elections. The EU noted in their report that there were marked improvements from previous elections, although stating that more work needed to be done. “

The Presidency said that it would work with relevant stakeholders to ensure that the recommendations in the reports are implemented and areas of concerns noted by the EU were addressed.

Despite the hitches of the elections and well noted challenges and violence that characterised the elections in certain parts of Nigeria, the Presidency believed that INEC conducted a good election and that the areas of concerns notwithstanding, the overall outcome of the election was not affected.

The Statement continued:

“The Presidency assures that the Commission is in safe hands and happy that they are currently engaged in root and branch reviews of the 2019 general elections and will input lessons learned into its recommendations for electoral and constitutional reforms.

“We believe that INEC conducted a good election and will continue to improve on its processes and procedures.

“While it is regretted that the elections in a few parts of the country witnessed some violence, among other shortcomings highlighted by the EU, we note however that none of these hitches affected the overall outcome of the elections.

“Thankfully, EU did not question the results of the presidential election. For instance, on page 3 in its Executive Summary, the EU said: ‘positively, the elections were competitive, parties were overall able to campaign and civil society enhanced accountability.’ “

The Presidency also gave additional reasons why the EU report on Nigeria Election was acceptable and welcome:

“The report also acknowledged that INEC made a number of improvements, including making electoral participation more accessible through simplified voting procedures.

“On page 4, the EU noted that the elections were competitive with a large number of candidates for all seats although competition was primarily between the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party.

“According to the report “parties and candidates were overall able to campaign, with freedoms of assembly, expression and movement broadly respected.”

“On Page 5, the report noted that the EU EOM media monitoring over 46 days showed federal government-owned Radio’s commitment to balanced election coverage.

“It said that positively in almost all observations party agents received copies of the results forms, adding that the National Collation Centre for the presidential election was open to party agents and observers, and was continuously televised.

“Again on page 37, the report said the national collation Centre for the presidential results was open to party agents, observers and the media with each state’s results projected on a large screen.”

The Presidency also quoted copiously from the reports to show that it was in alignment with the findings”

“There was continuous live television coverage and the media published the results as announced by INEC, thereby increasing access to results information.” — EU Report

Page 41 (Results & Stakeholder Reaction): “ YIAGA announced that the results were consistent with its parallel vote tabulation that INDEPENDENTLY projected the results based on a sample of 1,515 polling units. The two leading parties won 96.8% of the valid votes between them.”

In all, the Presidency believes the the report does not discredit the 2019 presidential election as won by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) under President Muhammadu Buhari.