The European Union ( EU) election observation mission to Nigeria has demanded transparency and accountability from all institutions in the elections involved in the conduct of the general elections.Chief of EU Observer, Maria Arena, stressed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies must not only be neutral but must be seen to be neutral.Arena, who briefed reporters on activities and mandate of the EU electoral mission to Nigeria, also charged political actors to work with integrity.While noting that EU attaches great significance to the elections, she, however, stressed EU main concern is in the process and not the outcome of the elections.According to her: We are here in the spirit of cooperation with Nigeria. We stand ready to deliver an impartial, objective assessment of the electoral process. If I have to key final messages, they are these:The transparency and accountability of all the institutions involved in the elections are absolutely essential for public trust and confidence in the process. Thus we hope that INEC and also the security forces will provide clear real-time information on what they are doing and actions they have taken.INEC and the security forces need to be seen to work neutrally in all their actions from the leadership down.She added: I hope that state bodies and political parties all play their part in promoting a fair and peaceful process before, during and after Election Day.This means working with integrity for the sake of the nation, promoting a calm response to any problems or frustrations.Reacting to criticism of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo on the capacity of the electoral body, the EU Chief Observer said such was expected in political atmosphere but cautioned politicians on their utterances.But we will be cautious in our comments ahead of the elections and monitor the situation without bias, she stressed.She also explained the need for political actors to trust the institutions (INEC), especially when they are going to be working together.For the general elections, Arena said EU will be deploying 11 election analysts and 40 long-term observers.The observers, according to her, will be spread across the six geo-political zones of the country, covering twenty cities.In the last 48 hours of the arrival of the mission, she said they have met with relevant stakeholders, including INEC, political parties, religious organisations and security apparatuses, among others.Read Also:INEC to political actors: well not be dragged into meaningless debateShe further explained that the election observation mission is completely independent of EU delegations and we will assess Nigerias commitment to electoral laws and international best practices.The mandate according to her is only to collect information concerning the electoral process and then publish our findings and make recommendations.We are not interested in the outcome of the elections; we have no interest in seeing this or that candidate or party win.We are here to observe if the electoral process was conducted in a transparent and credible manner.
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