Finally, ECOWAS Authority, African parliamentarians, congratulate Tinubu, Nigeria on successful poll

Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, Umaru Sissoco Embalo, has finally congratulated Nigeria’s President-elect, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on his electoral victory in the February 25 Presidential election.

This is also as Members of the Network of African Parliamentarians for Defence and Security Communities have joined in congratulating Nigeria for holding a successful presidential election.

Candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Nigeria, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, was, early Wednesday morning, declared winner of the controversial election marred by protests and rejections from many quarters.

However, since the announcement as President-elect, much of the international community has remained silent on the outcome of the presidential elections.

Also, many of the international election observer groups which monitored the poll had in their preliminary reports scored the electoral umpire in the country, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) low marks on conduct and other logistics.

Reacting to the Nigeria polls in a communiqué, General Embalo said: “The Chair of ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government and the entire leadership, wish to convey our heartfelt felicitations to His Excellency, Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu, on his election as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

General Embalo appealed to stakeholders to promote peace and to use constitutional means to address any grievances they may have.

Meanwhile, Members of the Network of African Parliamentarians for Defence and Security Communities who are attending the 7th Extra-Ordinary Session of the network in Abuja said that Nigeria has shown a good example to other African countries.

Chairman of the Network of African Parliamentarians for Defence and Security Communities from the Republic of Liberia, Jimmy Smith, said that with the population of Nigeria and the quick announcement of the result, Nigeria has shown a good example to other countries.

“All I can say is that there should be peace and tranquility, so that the people of Nigeria can enjoy the workings of democracy. I know the workings or follow closely, politics in Nigeria and the aspirations of Nigerians and Nigerians are well respected on the continent of Africa,“ Smith said.

He said that the network feeds one another with information on how to manage trans-border security challenges adding that the network has worked for the safety of African citizens.

 “As a network we have trans border information and this is what transmit to our various security apparatus. As a network, we believe that the expectation we promised our people will be able to collect intelligence and information met.“

He said that moving forward, the network would work towards sustaining security in Africa.

Also speaking, Richard Tongi, from Kenya, said that he was impressed with the conduct of the Nigerian election, adding that the African continent is on the right track to democracy.

Honorary President of the Network, Yeo Fozie, said that the network would continue to share its experiences for the good of the continent.

Also, the outgoing President General of the Network of African Parliamentarians for Defence and Security Communities and Chairman House of Representatives Committee on National Security and Intelligence, Hon Sha’aban Sharadda, said that the objective of the extraordinary session was to carry out the investiture of the newly elected President General, in Person of Berting Mobanzi, who is the chairman of Defence in the National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

He commended the Buhari administration for its remarkable performance in facilitating efficient national security sector reform that attracts the attention of sister African countries.

“Is significant to note that the Buhari administration has not only prioritised security on its governance agenda, but has committed more time, logistics and resources to address the national security challenges than any regime in the history of democratic governance in Nigeria. At this point, it is important to mention the professionalization of the military/intelligence community, enhanced provision of capacity development services, improved international collaboration within ECOWAS states and consistent increase in annual budgetary allocations for security sector over the years.“ Sharada said.

It would be recalled that the EU, AU, ECOWAS Observer groups have been scathing in their ‘preliminary reports on the conduct of the polls with poor scorecard for INEC.

The African Union (AU) and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Observation Missions in Nigeria called on INEC to review the system of uploading results in real-time by ensuring the quick upload of election results on its portal among others.

The leader of the AU delegation and former President of Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta, and the leader of the ECOWAS delegation and former President of Sierra Leone, Ernest Koroma, stated this when they briefed the media on the preliminary report of the elections in Abuja.

This is also as the Chairperson of the Commonwealth Observer Group, and former President of South Africa, Mr. Thabo Mbeki called on ‘all those with grievances to address disputes through prescribed legal channels… The time now is for restraint and continued patience as we await the final results.”

Mbeki acknowledged ‘the commitment shown by voters, despite the late arrival of election officials and materials at many polling units, technical issues with biometric identification machines in some cases, and delays with the live results transmission system.’

Commonwealth Observer Group further noted ‘some inconsistencies in procedures, particularly in the positioning of some polling booths which compromised the secrecy of the ballot, as well as, lack of advance voting for those deployed on election day.’

“As voting hours extended into the night due to late openings, some polling units were ill-equipped with proper lighting to facilitate voting and counting in the dark,” Mbeki said.

The Group, therefore, encouraged the electoral commission to conduct a thorough post-election review of the electoral process to draw lessons and consider setting up appropriate mechanisms to implement the recommendations of observers.

The chairperson while also noting the low percentage of women candidates, said it was however ‘impressed by the vibrant participation’ of young people, including as polling officials, in the elections.