By Julius Peter, Osogbo
The International Association of World Peace Advocates (IAWPA) has pledged to provide comprehensive monitoring of Saturday’s Osun State governorship election, with its observers expected to cover the 30 local government areas of the state.
The International Spokesperson of the organisation, P. Ambassador Emmanuel Nkweke, disclosed this on Friday during a press briefing in Osogbo, where he said the group was accredited by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to observe the election.
Nkweke explained that the organisation had assembled between 30 and 36 international observers who would lead teams across the state, supported by field workers and domestic election observers.
He said the observers had commenced pre-election monitoring and would pay particular attention to three critical areas: the performance of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), the handling of election results and security.
“We are concentrating majorly on three things: the functionality of the BVAS, the issue of results, and the area of security,” he said.
The IAWPA spokesperson called on political parties, candidates and voters to respect the rules of the election, warning that intimidation, violence and other forms of electoral misconduct could undermine the credibility of the exercise.
He also urged voters to turn out peacefully and exercise their franchise, assuring them that the presence of international observers would help strengthen confidence in the electoral process.
Nkweke said his experience observing elections in more than 24 African countries had equipped him and his team with the capacity to independently assess electoral activities without political bias.
He said the organisation would not rely on rumours or unverified allegations in assessing the election, but would base its observations on information gathered directly from the field.
Responding to concerns raised by some political parties over alleged intimidation and possible violence, Nkweke said credible reports of incidents would be investigated by the organisation’s field teams.
He appealed to journalists, political actors and members of the public to alert the observers whenever incidents capable of affecting the peaceful conduct of the election occur.
According to him, the organisation has the capacity to deploy observers to affected locations to verify reports and document what transpired.
While declining to disclose the exact number of observers assigned to individual locations for security and operational reasons, Nkweke assured that the deployment would provide effective coverage across Osun State.
He said the organisation would present its findings based on evidence gathered before, during and after the election, maintaining that the report would be devoid of sentiment or political influence.
Nkweke expressed optimism that the Osun governorship election would be peaceful and credible, urging all stakeholders to put the interest of the state above political considerations and allow the people’s votes to count.
