Professor Yemi Osinbajo, the former Vice President of Nigeria who is the Chairman of the Commonwealth Observer Group to observe the June 24 multi-tier elections in Sierra Leone, yesterday outlined the roles of his Group to journalists at a press conference at the Radisson Blu Mammy Yoko Hotel in Freetown.
He noted that they were not in Sierra Leone to meddle into the elections but to “observe the pre-election environment, polling day activities and the postelection period”. He stated that in particular they would “consider whether the conditions exist for credible elections, including a fair election environment; whether public media has been impartial; the transparency of the entire process; whether voters are free to express their will; and whether the counting and results process is transparent”.
After those would-be observations, Professor Yemi Osinbajo stated that they would then “report on whether the elections have been conducted in accordance with the standards to which Sierra Leone has committed itself, including its national law, and regional and international commitments”.
In conducting their duties, the Chairman of the Commonwealth Observer Group continued that: “we will be guided by the principles of neutrality, impartiality, objectivity and independence. As we are here in our individual capacities as responsible and experienced Commonwealth citizens, our assessment will be our own, and not that of any member government”.
In the coming days, the Commonwealth Observer Group will be meeting with the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL); representatives of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP); political parties, security agencies, civil society groups, citizen and international observer groups, diplomats, and the media.
On Thursday, the Commonwealth Observer Group will deploy their observers in small teams across various parts of the country to observe the voting, counting and results process, as well as meet with other stakeholders in respective locations.
On Election Day, Professor Yemi Osinbajo and his team will observe the opening, voting, closing, counting and the results management processes. They will then issue an interim statement on their preliminary findings on June 26 before members of the Group depart Sierra Leone on June30.