<<Print>>Ahead of Saturday's presidential elections in Nigeria, the ECOWAS Chairman, President John Dramani Mahama, has called on the candidates to accept the results in good faith when they are announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He said ECOWAS had been monitoring the situation over some time now to ensure that obstacles to free and fair elections were removed so that people would accept the outcome of the elections.
Speaking to journalists after holding a closed-door meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja yesterday, Mr Mahama said "The whole of ECOWAS and the international community are in solidarity with Nigeria to have a very transparent and free election and further entrench the democratic credentials of Nigeria”.
"This is a critical election for Nigeria. It will be one more indication to the world that Nigeria is a democratic country ruled by the tenets of good governance and the rule of law, " he added.
Mr Mahama, who was on a pre-election visit to Nigeria, was also expected to meet with the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, at another venue in Abuja before meeting the Chairman of INEC, Professor Attahiru Jega, to see the state of preparedness.
The President would also meet the Togolese President and the other contestants to the April 15 presidential election in that country today for similar reasons.
Busy year
2015 is an exceptionally crucial and busy elections year in the sub-region during which five countries would go for presidential polls beginning with Nigeria, to be followed by Togo on April 15.
Burkina Faso, Guinea, and Côte d’Ivoire would have theirs afterwards.
Presidential elections in many countries in West Africa present a threat to peace and stability so ECOWAS is determined to ensure that the polls pass peacefully.
President Jonathan, contesting on the ticket of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP), is facing stiff challenge from former military leader General Buhari.
The presidential elections, originally scheduled for February 14, this year, were put off due to the security threat posed by the Islamist group, Boko Haram.
No violence
The ECOWAS Chairman, who was accompanied by the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Desire-Kadre Ouedraogo, said the expectations were that there would not be any electoral violence after the elections.
Describing Nigeria as a very important member of ECOWAS, the President said, "Nigeria’s safety and security is the safety and security of the entire sub-region."
Togo
Incumbent President Faure Gnassingbé will be seeking a third five-year term on the ticket of the ruling Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) party.
He faces competition from Jean-Pierre Fabre of the National Alliance for Change (ANC) and Alberto Olympio of the Party of the Togolese.
- See more at: http://graphic.com.gh/news/politics/40550-accept-results-of-elections-president.html#sthash.0cCZhbIu.dpuf