Mogae leads 'Club' poll observer team to Nigeria

Staff Writer | Wednesday March 23, 2011 00:00

According to a statement from the former president's former office, Mogae will travel to Nigeria on Saturday from London where he will be attending the Mo Ibrahim Prize Committee meeting. He leaves for New York today to attend the MasterCard Foundation board meeting of which he is a member. He will leave New York tomorrow for London.  Mogae will return home on April 16. Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma, constituted the COG at the invitation of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of Nigeria.

Speaking in London after constituting the group, Sharma 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 the democratic process in Nigeria.'

Sharma said the Commonwealth has a long and substantial history of engagement with Nigeria and that it is important that the 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,' he said.

The COG mandate is to observe the preparations for the elections, 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.

Mogae's team will determine in its own judgment 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.

Its report will be submitted to the Secretary-General, who will in turn send it to the Nigeria government, the Independent National Election Commission, political parties, and thenw to all Commonwealth governments. It will also be made available to the public through the Commonwealth website (www.thecommonwealth.org)The COG comprises 13 members, supported by a team from the Commonwealth Secretariat.