As the 2019 general election campaigns begin, the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan and other foreign missions in Nigeria have urged Nigerian politicians to refrain from hate speech and violence capable of truncating the elections in the country.
This was disclosed in a cross press statement signed by the European Union (Delegation to Nigeria), France, Germany, United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Romania, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden.
This was made available to BusinessDay on Sunday by Tinuoluwa Adelegan, senior communications officer/press and public affairs, British High Commission.
The foreign missions reiterated their commitment to support the practice of democracy in Nigeria, with the need for a peaceful, credible, free and fair election process. They added that as friends of Nigeria and its people, they would follow the campaigns and election process closely. “Who wins the elections is for the Nigerian people to decide. Our concern is to see a process leading to free, fair, transparent and peaceful elections,” the statement said.
“We urge all involved – political and non-political actors – to refrain from using hate speech and take a firm stance against violence. The 2015 Peace Accords played an important role in that regard and we welcome new efforts towards that end.
“We were gravely concerned over widespread incidents of intimidation, interference and vote-buying during the recent gubernatorial elections. We were also perturbed by irregularities and violence during party primaries, and noted with particular concern that several women candidates were disenfranchised,” the statement said.
The missions also reiterated the importance of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as it fulfils its constitutional role. They said that INEC must be allowed to operate free from outside pressure and intimidation, and in turn must demonstrate full neutrality and professionalism.
“We encourage that adequate funding is swiftly facilitated for INEC and supporting institutions, and we hope to see the entry into force of improvements to the Electoral Act as soon as possible. We wish to draw particular attention to the fundamental role of the security agencies in providing a safe and secure environment for the Nigerian people to exercise their democratic rights. It is vital that security agencies act, and are seen to act, in an impartial manner that maintains the high standards of professional conduct,” they stated.
The missions also expressed strong support for the principle of media freedom and the vital role the independent media plays in ensuring informed public debate and stressed the importance of balanced, neutral and non-defamatory coverage.
“At the beginning of the 2019 electoral campaign, we would like to reiterate our strong commitment to support democracy in Nigeria. We encourage Nigeria and its people to consolidate and deepen democracy, building on the standards set in 2015,” the statement said.
