The Nation Newspaper

Tag: EU

  • EU: more Nigerian professionals in Europe than in Nigeria

    EU: more Nigerian professionals in Europe than in Nigeria

    THE European Union (EU) has claimed that there are more Nigerian professionals in Europe than there are in Nigeria.

    It warned this can be detrimental to the development of the country.

    The EU Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Mr. Michel Arrion, said this at a Conference on National Migration Policy Thematic Areas, organised by UN International Organisation for Migration in Abuja.

    EU, Arrion explained, welcomed migration as long as it was legal, adding that “it enhances the movement of factors of production, particularly labour, especially in Europe.

    “Migration is good. We (Europe) like migration as long as it is legal. We need migration for various reasons.

    “Movement of factors of production is a good thing and labour moving freely is a very good thing.

    “In Europe and in other western countries, we have this specific issue of aging population. So, we need fresh blood in our countries, but we have to be careful sometimes about brain drain.

    “As you know, there are more PhD holders from Nigerian origin in Europe or in America than in Nigeria.

    “There are more Nigerian doctors and nurses in Europe and in America than in Nigeria. So, let’s be careful with that. It is good to attract the best people, but not to the detriment of the development of your country.’’

    Minister of National Planning and Deputy Chairman, National Planning Commission (NPC) Dr. Abubakar Sulaiman said Nigeria was grappling with a wide range of migration issues.

  • EU to propose relocation of 40,000 refugees from Italy, Greece

    The European Commission is set to propose next week that 40,000 asylum seekers who have arrived by boat in Italy and Greece should be relocated across the continent in response to what it considers an emergency situation in both countries.

    The proposal, revealed to Reuters by an EU source familiar with a draft, follows plans announced last week for the European Union to take in 20,000 asylum-seekers currently living outside the bloc.

    The Commission has also set a quota system, based on a country’s size and economic health, for those resettled migrants as well as for those relocated within the EU.

    The EU measure is due to be finalised on Wednesday and would need majority support from EU nations expecting to take in some of the migrants.

    The deaths of hundreds or thousands of migrants, largely from Africa, attempting to cross the Mediterranean in often flimsy boats has raised calls for coordinated policy to cope with the influx and stem the flow.

    The Commission had not provided the number of proposed relocations. The 40,000 figure could have been set to guarantee acceptance after some EU states, notably France, had initially baulked at the idea of opening their doors to migrants.

    The term “quotas” has been latched onto by anti-immigration groups as a sign that refugees are being imposed on France from outside.

    Last year, there were 600,000 asylum claims in the EU.

  • UK should not fear EU exit

    The chairman of construction equipment firm JCB has said the UK should not fear an exit from the European Union.

    “We are the fifth or sixth largest economy in the world. We could exist on our own – peacefully and sensibly,” Lord Bamford told BBC Midlands.

    Lord Bamford said an exit would enable the UK to “negotiate as our country rather than being one of 28 nations”.

    Prime Minister David Cameron has promised an in-out referendum on the UK’s EU membership by the end of 2017.

    British Chambers of Commerce director general John Longworth said that 55 per cent of his members were in favour of a “reformed Europe”.

    “The ‘reformed’ part of it is quite important, and if you look at a lot of the economic reports… the in-out debate is more nuanced than a lot of people would have us believe,” he told the BBC.

    He said the BCC was waiting to see what shape reform proposals would take, and that it was down to UK politicians to explain to business what reforms they would be pursuing from Brussels.

    Mr Longworth said that, while businesses were used to dealing with uncertainty, an in-out referendum should “take place as soon as is practical”.

    Lord Bamford was speaking as JCB, a privately-owned firm, reported £303m in underlying earnings for 2014, compared with £313m in 2013.

    JCB said the UK’s construction boom had helped offset weaker markets globally.

    The construction equipment market in both Brazil and China dropped by 17 per cent last year, with Russia down 27per cent and India by almost 15 per cent, it reported.

    In contrast, the market for plant machinery in the UK surged by 30per cent, while in the US it rose 13 per cent.

    Overall JCB said sales totalled £2.5bn, down 6% on 2013.

  • EU to take 20, 000 refugees

    The European Commission has unveiled a new blueprint for dealing with the European Union’s migration crisis, including a controversial plan for national quotas.

    The EU aims to bring 20,000 refugees to Europe in the next two years, as part of the plan, at a cost of €50million (£36million).

    The Commission is urging EU states to share the burden of processing asylum claims. Italy and Greece, facing a migrant surge, are struggling to cope.

    Under EU law the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark are exempted from the quota plan, the BBC reports.

    There is pressure for tougher EU action to send economic migrants back home.

    The EU is considering naval action in the Mediterranean to intercept boats used to traffic migrants from North Africa, with Libya a particular hotspot.

    But EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, said concrete military measures would have to be decided on Monday by EU foreign and defence ministers.

    Any military strike against human traffickers would require United Nations Security Council authorisation, the EU says.

    At a news conference in Brussels, Ms Mogherini called the migration problem in the Mediterranean “unprecedented and “dramatic.”

    More than 1,800 migrants have died at sea this year trying to reach Italy – a sharp rise on last year’s corresponding figures.

  • Press freedom day: Let journalism thrive

    Press freedom day: Let journalism thrive

    “Is the story well told, does it reflect all the sides to the story, but basically does it help the people to take informed decisions, does it advance society in a way, does it help for change.” These were the words of Mr. Musikilu Mojeed, a Nigerian delegate at the 2015 World Press Freedom Day (WPFD).

    The event, co-hosted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, started on Saturday, 2nd of May in Riga, the capital city of Latvia, with a side event where participants discussed Media laws, restrictions on civil societies and internet freedom.

    It was agreed that freedom of expression is a fundamental principle of any democratic state without which citizens cannot make informed decisions and international laws require government to protect this freedom, particularly in relations to the activities of media practitioners.

    However, the Latvian National Library saw a large attendance as the major event took place with different but interesting sessions, which all hinged on the theme: “Let Journalism Thrive – Towards Better Reporting, Gender Equality & Media Safety in the Digital Age”.

    Speaking on Media and gender equality, Ms. Ifeyinwa Omowole, President – Nigerian Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) advocated for more women participation in the media. “The more women we have in the media, the more we are likely to have in managerial positions,” she stressed.

    This session focused specially on the 2oth anniversary of Beijing Declaration and the platform for action. It would be recalled that the declaration, adopted by 189 governments at the 4th Women’s \conference, outlined 12 critical areas of concern that needed to be addressed. One of which is ‘Women and the Media’.

    Mr. Edet Ojo, Executive Director, Media Rights Agenda in an interview submitted that the biggest challenge for the media in Africa is the availability of a lot of government and yet no government actors who attempt to restrict freedom of expression.

    “They try to prevent you from saying things that they are uncomfortable about. But for other groups including terrorists groups, criminal organisations you find out that there are other forms of offline reprisals,” he observed.

    In his opinion, the Scandinavian countries are the best in time of protecting journalists and freedom of speech saying: “They are open societies so they don’t really worry much about what their citizens say and maybe also, because the level of corruption in those societies are quite low so there is less concern.”

    While the session on Regulations, Re-Regulations and De-Regulation came to the end, one point remained clear in the minds of participants, which is ‘If the media refuses to take up regulations for the profession, government will do because regulation is necessary anyways.’

    Interestingly, the event this year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of UNESCO and equally the Independence Day of the country of Latvia at 25 years.

    Thus, Ms. Anda Rozukalne, Chairman of the Latvian Association of Journalists disclosed that the country could not treat matters of press freedom with levity for what it means to them. “Press freedom is very important to us because it played a vital role in the acquisition of our independence,” she noted.

    The next edition of the WPFD in 2016 will be co-hosted by Finland making it the first time the event is held in the Scandinavian region with the theme: Freedom of Information, the Right to Seek and to Receive Information.

    It was noted that UNESCO intends to focus on this issue in Finland, as ‘Finland has been one of the strongest supporters of the freedom of information (FoI)’, Mr. Ming-Kuok Lim, Program Specialist in the Division for Freedom of Expression and Media Development of UNESCO.

    The delegation therefore adopted the Latvian Declarations after the Finnish Ambassador to Latvia, Mr. Olli Kantanen, officially received the torch from the chair of the steering committee of Latvia, Ms Baiba Braze, in a handover ceremony

     

  • EU commits N35.2b to water, other projects in 14 states

    EU commits N35.2b to water, other projects in 14 states

    THE European Union has committed N35.2 billion to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in 14 states, the Head Section, Social Governance, Delegation of the European Union in Nigeria, Dr. Klaus Gautsch, said at the weekend.

    According to him, the funds are to improve on WASH issues in the 14 states.

    Dr. Gautsch, who was represented by Mrs. Kate Kanebi, gave the states as Ekiti, Jigawa, Kano, Edo, Adamawa, Plateau, Yobe, Cross River, Osun, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers.

    He spoke in Abuja at the launch of the Stockholm Junior Water Prize organised by the Pan African Vision for the Environment, in collaboration with the Sweden Embassy.

    The EU official said the major focus of the EU is on supporting the water sector reform in the country through development of policy, legal, building institutions and strengthening of local capacities.

    He said: “The EU has been playing a very active role as one of the biggest donors in the water sector since 2001 and continues to do so up till 2017 and beyond.

    “We are supporting the sector in 14 states with about N35.2 billion.

    “The states are inclusive of three northern states of Jigawa, Kano and Yobe. Three southern states of Anambra, Cross River, and Osun. Five Niger Delta states of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, and Rivers with additional three states of Adamawa, Ekiti and Plateau.

    “Our WASH programmes are typically not water supply projects with main emphasis on service delivery, but the major focus is on supporting the water sector reform through development of policy, legal and M and E frameworks, building institutions and strengthening of local capacities.

     “The reform processes are building on world best practices in water supply, sanitation, and hygiene and health education promotion.

    “To fast track water service delivery, all projects also have a service delivery component, which requires a substantial contribution from the beneficiary states, local government areas and communities to improve long-term sustainability and local ownership.

    “I will like to acknowledge this noble action taken by the Stockholm International Water Institute in partnership with the Pan African Vision for the Environment over this youth empowerment initiative that we believe will motivate the younger generation to begin to champion the course towards mitigating the looming water crisis occasioned by related climate change issues.”

    The programme manager, PAVE, Temiloluwa Ogunniyi, said the winner of the SJWP will receive $15,000, a blue crystal prize sculpture, a diploma as well as a stay in Stockholm.

  • Boko Haram: 45,000 displaced children to benefit from EU’s N325m support

    Boko Haram: 45,000 displaced children to benefit from EU’s N325m support

    Help is finally coming the way of about 45,000 children and adolescents displaced by the activities of the Boko a Haram insurgents in Borno State as the European Union is set to make available the sum of N325 million to support community-based psychosocial protection for them.

    Speaking at a signing ceremony of the financing agreement for the 11th European Development Fund support for strengthening community-based psychosocial and protection services for children and adolescents in Borno State, the Minister for National Planning, Dr. Abubakar Sulaiman, said the project will be implemented in 300 communities across 11 local government areas in the state for a period of 36 months.

    The Minister said by authorising the financing agreement, Nigeria will be on the right path to mitigate the adverse impact of social upheavals and insecurity in Borno State. This, he said, would also significantly assist Nigeria in achieving its developmental goals articulated in the Vision 20-2020.

    He said: “In 2014, the federal government of Nigeria signed the 11th EDF National Indicative Programme with the European Union for the implementation of development programmes and projects covering health, nutrition and resilience, sustainable energy and access to electricity, rule of law, governance and democracy.

    “Of importance to today’s event is the support for strengthening community-based psychosocial and protection services for children and adolescents in Borno State, Nigeria, which falls into social infrastructure and service sector of the 11th EDF.

    “I wish to inform you that the support for strengthening community-based psychosocial and protection services for children and adolescents projects under the 11th EDF arms to promote a community-led protective environment for children and adolescents through strengthening community-based services including psychosocial support.

    “The project is expected to contribute to mitigating the negative psychosocial implications of the humanitarian crisis that currently plagues Borno State, which has largely disrupted education and health services, including immunization activities.

    “The project will compliment the ongoing 10th EDF support to immunization governance in Nigeria, especially the polio eradication component which has been a source of concern to residents on Borno State.”

    Head of the European Union in Nigeria, Ambassador Michel Arrion, said the programme will provide psychological first aid services to 45,000 children affected by the Boko Haram insurgency in Borno State, especially those that require sustained support to recover from the trauma they have suffered, who will be referred to specialists’ services.

  • Migrants’ crisis: EU to hold emergency summit

    European Union leaders are due to hold an emergency summit on ways to stem the number of people risking the perilous journey across the Mediterranean, the BBC reports.

    Draft proposals for the meeting include offering 5,000 places for resettlement for migrants “qualifying for protection” under a pilot project.

    More than 800 people drowned off Libya’s coast on Sunday, bringing the number of deaths this year to 1,750.

    More than 21,000 people are estimated to have reached Italy this year.

    Italian Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, has called for direct action against people smugglers.

    He described them as “the slave traders of the 21st Century.”

    A draft statement for Thursday’s meeting in Brussels says leaders will commit to “undertake systematic efforts to identify, capture and destroy vessels before they are used by traffickers.”

    It says EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini “is invited to immediately begin preparations for a possible security and defence policy operation to this effect, in accordance with international law.”

    Other plans include supporting UN efforts to help form a stable government in Libya.

    Italy said 90 per cent of the migrant boats ending up on its shores set off from Libya.

     

  • EU, Soyinka, Reps, others to govt: bring back the girls

    EU, Soyinka, Reps, others to govt: bring back the girls

    Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka led hundreds of Nigerians yesterday to demand the release of the missing Chibok schoolgirls.

    The European Union (EU), in a statement yesterday, also called for the girls’ release.

    Soyinka spoke at a forum organised by Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, the President of Women Arise, one year after the girls were taken away.

    Actionaid Nigeria yesterday marched for the girls. It marched with 219 youths, to represent the girls still in captivity.

    The EU statement reads: “A year has passed since 287 school girls from Chibok, in north-eastern Nigeria, were abducted by Boko Haram. Though some girls escaped, others have since been taken and more than 300 girls are still missing. We express our solidarity with the plight of the families and with the ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ campaign.

    “All efforts must continue to be made to rescue and reunite the girls with their families, and bring the perpetrators of this terrible act to account. The EU remains ready to assist the Government of Nigeria, including the newly elected President and local authorities, as well as others in the region in their fight against Boko Haram and all forms of terrorism and criminality.”

    To Soyinka, Nigerians must join hands with the government to ensure that the children were found.

    “We must make sure that such assault on our humanity doesn’t happen again.

    “The survival of humanity and of the nation must remain paramount,” he said.

    According to him, terrorism is not a Nigerian phenomenon alone and may not be going away soon.

    “However, we must not get used to it. Our children are being dehumanised. I believe that our responsibility is to assist by becoming vigilant.

    “We must become policemen/women; vigilante of our communities. We must encourage others to be protective members of their community,” Soyinka said.

    Former presidential candidate Prof. Pat Utomi   also called for the girls’ freedom. He said humanity, the world over, was a shared one and anything that diminished any human and did not touch others was bad.

    “Terror is not something we should tolerate. We must confront terror and not sit in our homes complaining.

    “We must stand up to enforce what we demand. The measure of the progress of any civilisation is how they hold the dignity of the human person.

    “It’s not just about rescuing the girls alone but about staying together and fighting for what is right.

    “It is however important to recognise that nothing gets done without a strategy,” he said.

    Utomi suggested that plans must be put in place that would help rehabilitate the girls when they eventually return.

    “Their psyche must have been so tampered with. The nation must ensure that they are re-oriented,” he said.

    On the just concluded elections, Utomi said: “We can hope that we have started moving forward.

    “We used to be a people that assumed nothing will change but we are beginning to realise that things can change, so, it is a new dawn for our country,” he said.

    Speaking at the forum, a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mrs Funmi Tejuosho, expressed concern over what the missing girls could be passing through.

    “These children are lost and we don’t know what is happening to them. We must never relent until they are found,” she said.

    Dr Okei-Odumakin, who is also the President of Campaign for Democracy (CD), said more should be done to enhance security of lives and property in Nigeria.

    “The whole world stood in unison to call for the return of our girls since they were taken from the Chibok secondary school.

    “We will continue to raise awareness and to insist that our military gets better welfare to boost their morale,” Dr Okei-Odumakin said.

    Also yesterday, the House of Representatives urged President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration to do everything possible to re-unite the remaining  219 Chibok girls kidnapped over a year ago in Borno state to their parents, before handing over to the new administration on May 29.

    The resolution of the House was sequel to a motion sponsored by Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, APC, Lagos under matters of urgent national importance.

    Mrs Dabiri-Erewa, moving the motion, said it is one year since Boko Haram stormed the school in Borno and abducted over 200 girls.

    “It is exactly one year since Boko Haram terrorists stormed the premises of GSS Chibok in Borno State and took away almost 300 students who were preparing to write their school certificate final examination.

    “It is unfortunate that the innocent girls were captured virtually unchallenged and government was unresponsive for over two weeks and one year on, it deeply hurts that no concrete information is available as to the whereabouts of our missing girls from Chibok.”

    Members who spoke in support of the motion include Friday Itulah, Nnena Elendu- Ukeje, Jumoke Okoya- Thomas, Nkoyo Toyo, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, Ife Arowosoge, Stella Odogwu.

    Friday Itulah noted that the issue of the Chibok Girls “is a sore thorn in the flesh of this administration. The Jonathan administration should ensure that before the 29 of May we are celebrating the return of the girls.”

    Hon. Stella Odogwu said the issues surrounding the missing girls is a mystery.

    “It is a criminal act that should not be condoned.”

    Hon. Jumoke Okoya-Thomas urged prayers for the girls. “We should not forget the girls in prayers. It is easy to forget. It is the duty of the government to protect the citizens. We hope Nigerian will never see this kind of situation again.They said 50 were found. If this is true then the others can come back.”

    Hon. Nkiruka Onyejeocha expressed surprise that “they are not back” and admonished that the girls should not be forgotten. Her colleague, Ife Arowosoge, wanted definite answers over the issue.

    “Are you sure they are in Nigeria and are alive? The chief of Army Staff must tell us,” he insisted.

    Tambuwal in his ruling noted that the motion is an important one and that “it is dear to our hearts”. He further said “I wish to add that as a nation we must do everything humanly possible to bring the girls back.

    “We pray that God in his infinite wisdom and mercy should guide our security agents on the recovery of the girls.”

    He said it is sad that the girls have been missing for a whole year. “Even the claim by the Military that they know where the girls are have turned out not to be correct. I think we have to be serious about it.”

    When he called for a vote on the motion, it was overwhelmingly supported by all members.

    Members of the #BringBackOurGirls advocacy yesterday said they appreciated President-elect Muhammadu Buhari for “his kind and soothing words” on the occasion of the one year commemoration.

    The group demanded that the safe return of the girls be made top agenda of the transition between the present and the incoming government.

    In a statement by Dr Oby Ezekwesilli and Hadiza Bala-Usman , they stated: “Today, 14  April, 2015 is that dreadful day we never imagined will come without having  back our missing precious 219 Chibok schoolgirls, abducted exactly one year ago today.

    “We thank Nigeria’s president-elect for his kind and soothing words on the occasion of this one-year commemoration; wherein he promises among other things to do everything he can to #BringBackOurGirls when he becomes the president, if they are still alive. However, this does not address our concerns. We demand that the safe return of our girls be the top agenda of the transition between the present and the incoming one.

    “We have just concluded a march by #ChibokGirlsAmbassadors (part of the global schoolgirl march). We express our immense gratitude to our #ChibokGirlsAmbassadors for being the right voices to carry the message of their generational peers on a day like this.”

    They urged the United Nations to “deploy relevant instruments in ensuring the prompt rescue of our Chibok girls and other abductees, as well as improve the security situation in the country”.

    The Chibok girls ambassadors and members of the #BBOG advocacy staged a peaceful protest to the Ministry of Education to demand for the release of the girls and demand to know what the ministry was doing to assist with the rescue efforts.

    Although the ministry locked them out for almost an hour without allowing the children into the premises,  its Director, Human Resources Management, Mohammed Umar, later met with them and the girls gave him an ultimatum of May 29 for the Chibok girls’ rescue.

     

  • EU slams organisation of elections 

    EU slams organisation of elections 

    The European Union’s Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) yesterday criticised the elections.

    But the EU EOM returned a better verdict on the governorship election, saying: “overall, the process appeared to be more efficient with polling staff working diligently and improvements evident in the more timely opening of polling sites”.

    That was the best the EU election observer mission said about the elections.

    In its second preliminary statement issued yesterday in Abuja by the Chief of EU EOM, Santiago Fisas, the Mission said President Goodluck Jonathan’s concession of election defeat “may be partly attributed to the sustained efforts of the National Peace Committee which was formed to monitor compliance with the Abuja  Accord and to find mediated solutions to electoral disputes”.

    The EU team said INEC failed to provide “breakdown of the results, thereby precluding the checking of announced results, which risks diminished confidence”.

    “INEC, till date, has not centrally published the results of the Senate nor for the House of Representatives.”

    This, according to the EU, leaves stakeholders without official information on the composition of the new parliament, and instead relying on party and media unofficial compilations of results, which sometimes lack inconsistency.

    Also, the EU condemned the collation of the election results, describing it “as the weakest part of the Election Day process”.  According to the EU “out of the 43 collation centres on election night and in the following days, 14 were assessed as ‘bad’ and ‘very bad’. The first level of collation (at wards) appeared to be particularly problematic, with 8 out of 17 rated as “bad” or ‘very bad”.

    Fisas said results in some cases did “not always arrive in sealed tamper-proof envelopes (in 12 centres not one of the results arrived sealed), results not always being displayed at the centers, mathematical errors, inconsistent checking of results, and some repeated alterations of result forms.”

    According to him, “scrutiny appeared to be weak especially at the lower levels, with APC and PDP agents present only in 34 and 33 centers respectively and citizen observers only in 14 centers out of 43. In five centers visited, there were no agents or citizen observers present at all”.

    The EU EOM observers did not find any evidence of systematic manipulation of results, but the available presidential results from Rivers State, however, “include only highly implausible data, such as zero rejected(invalid) ballots out of 25,174 ballots cast in Omuma Local Government Area (LGA), no difference between the number of accredited registrants and the number who actually voted in Emohua and Ogu/Bolo LGAs, and a 98% turnout in the Emohua LGA.” Such questionable data, Fisas said, warrants further investigation.

    Commenting on other indicators of attempts to manipulate, the EU cited the findings of  the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), which stated that “turnout was inflated by at least 10 percent, with results adjusted in favour of PDP it doubted the collation in Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers.”

    The EU Election Observer Mission noted: “Some state representatives and candidates of the PDP and APC were seen to misuse incumbency. There were reported cases of abuse of state resources and also biased policing, as well as breaches of  campaign regulations and inducement of voters. Intimidation of opponents and deployment of armed thugs reportedly occured in Rivers, Lagos, Kaduna, Ogun and Oyo states.”

    Of particular concern to the EU was that religion, ethnic and sectional sentiments continued after the presidential election, including the threat of the Oba of Lagos to Igbo about perishing in the lagoon. The mission described the threats by some ex-militants and Ijaw youths in the Niger Delta as having increased the ethnic tension and sharp reactions in the social and public media.

    The mission faulted INEC leadership at both national and state levels for failing to provide sufficient information on the evident problems that arose during the elections. “Thus, it is not clear in how many locations polling could not be completed for security reasons. However, during collation, it became evident that in most observed states, some polling unit results were cancelled or could not be cleared due to over-voting, vandalism or snatching of material,” the EU said.

    The EU was worried that the “total number of registered voters in the declaration of the presidential election is, without any public explanation given, lower by 1.4 million than the total number of registered voters previously officially announced by INEC”.

    The official presidential turnout figure provided the EU said “is calculated from this reduced number of registered voters and refers to turnout for accreditation rather than for voting. This is a significant difference, given that over 2.3 million of those that were accredited (7.3%) did not finally cast their ballot. The announced official turnout is thus 47.09 percent, with a total of 29,432,083 votes cast. This is reduction from the 39,469,484 votes reportedly cast in  2011. The actual voter turnout (as opposed to accreditation turnout), calculated from the total number of registered voters officially announced by INEC on 13 January, is 42.76 percent.

    Of the 80 observation of voting, Fisas revealed that “23 were negatively evaluated. In 12 sites, there was interference with polling officials’ work, mainly by party agents. In 23 sites, ballot boxes were not sealed. Ink was not checked at all in 37 sites visited and in 25 locations ink was not applied. In 20 sites, voters never marked their ballot in secret and in 16 locations group voting was observed.”

    During closing, Fisas stated, essential checks were not consistently performed. According to him, “in nearly half the locations observed, unused ballots were not cancelled, counted or recorded as required. Similarly, counterfoils of used ballot papers were not generally counted, and basic reconciliation was not undertaken. In five sites visited, observers and agents were not able to observe counting without undue restrictions. In seven sites, PU results were not posted and in four, copies were not given to agents.

    The Mission will be back to Nigeria in June with its final report on the elections.