Stay out of Liberian poll Jega cautions ECOWAS Observers

Prof. Attahiru Jega, a former head of the Independent National Electoral Commission and the head of the Economic Community of West African States Observers Mission in Liberia, has urged political players and stakeholders to follow the law and fair play when participating in Tuesday, November 14th,’s presidential run-off in Liberia.

He also counseled onlookers not to tamper with the proceedings.

“On Friday, November 10, 2023, Prof Jega met successively with the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Liberia, Mr. Frank Musa Dean Jr.; President of the National Electoral Commission, Mrs. Davidetta Browne-Lansanah; some civil society actors and the ECOWAS Technical Team,” according to a statement released by the ECOWAS mission on Sunday.

“Jega discussed the challenges for a peaceful, free, transparent, and credible electoral process as well as election preparation in his meetings with these actors.”

The former chair of INEC met with a number of high-ranking officials from ECOWAS, according to the statement.

Jega was cited as pleading with the ECOWAS observers to “perform their tasks within the confines of the extant electoral legal frameworks and in accordance with international standards” during her speech.

In addition, he pleaded with them to utilize the knowledge and resources they had received throughout their training rather than meddling in the election process. He then requested that they offer any suggestions they may have for enhancing both the ECOWAS Election Observation Mission and the voting process.

According to the statement, the observers were briefed on the circumstances surrounding “the polls” by Josephine Nkrumah, the ECOWAS Resident Representative in Liberia.

The ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace, and Security, Abdel-Fatau Musah, expressed his satisfaction with the observers’ profile but tasked them with maintaining objectivity while observing the exercise.