Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, has told the United Nations that the commission would not disappoint Nigerians and the international community in conducting credible, transparent, inclusive elections.
The assurance was contained in his remarks during the meeting with the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) in Abuja, yesterday.
He also said Nigeria would participate in the nine-nation conference of electoral commissions and election experts this week as part of the build up to next year’s polls.
“We believe that your visit will not only encourage us in our determination to conduct credible, transparent, inclusive and verifiable elections, but we will also share the outcome of our discussion with colleagues from other electoral commissions in West Africa and beyond. We are aware of the importance of our elections to Nigeria, our sub-region and the world. We assure you that the commission will not fail the nation and the international community. We will continue to make incremental improvement to our electoral process supported by the deployment of appropriate and relevant technology that will make voter accreditation and result management more credible and transparent.
“Since your arrival in Nigeria, we have followed your engagements with stakeholders. In particular, we appreciate your fervent appeal for support to the efforts of INEC to conduct peaceful elections. With just 81 days to the 2023 general election, we have made tremendous progress in our preparations so far…”
Nigeria would make two presentations at the conference holding this week in Ouagadougou.
Participants include the host, Burkina Faso, Benin Republic, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Togo from West Africa, Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
