John Mahama briefs Kenya press ahead of election

Former President of Ghana and Chair of the Commonwealth observer group, John Dramani Mahama has on Thursday, August 3, 2017 briefed Kenyan press in Nairobi, Kenya ahead of their election.

He expressed confidence in the group to deliver on the mandate accorded them by the Kenya’s Independent and Electoral Boundaries Commission.

He expressed satisfaction in the quality of group for its representativeness. He said, “The Group is made up of eminent persons drawn from across the different regions of the Commonwealth, including Africa, Asia, Europe, the Caribbean and the Pacific.

They bring a wealth of experience from across the social and political spectrum including civil society, women’s and youth groups, human rights organizations and the media”.

He explained that the role of his team is basically “to observe the electoral process” and “act impartially and independently” to assess the manner in which the election is conducted.

He said that their observations will be used to measure whether or not the conduct of the election meets international standards. He added that it is the expectation of the team that the Presidential candidates would reaffirm their commitment to peaceful elections.

The former Ghana President also used the opportunity to express the commiserations of Commonwealth and the observer group to the family and the colleagues of Chris Msando of the Independent and Electoral Boundaries Commission, who was murdered a few days ago.

He further added that he and his team have received briefing from all relevant stakeholders and they will officially start work on August 5 and depart on August 14 after they have submitted the final report to the Commonwealth Secretary-General.

He reiterated the group is interested in a peaceful and credible election process. He also seized the moment to wish the people of Kenya well.

 A statement signed by the Special Aide of the President, Joyce Bawa Mogtari, last month indicated stated that President Mahama was expected in Nairobi a week before the election to lead a commonwealth observer group.

Source: 3news