Secretary-General, on Eve of Nigeria’s elections, Calls on All Nigerians to Vote, Welcomes Two Leading Candidates’ Statement to Respect Outcome

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

On the eve of presidential and parliamentary elections in Nigeria, the Secretary-General calls on all Nigerians to exercise their civic responsibility by going to the polls to vote in large numbers.  He welcomes the progress made by the Independent National Electoral Commission in the preparation for the elections.

The Secretary-General welcomes the joint statement signed under the auspices of the National Peace Committee and issued yesterday by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and Retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari, in which they renewed their pledge for peaceful free, fair and credible elections.  They also committed to respect the outcome of the elections.  He calls on the candidates and their supporters to resolve disputes that may arise from the electoral process through peaceful means.

The success of the polls is the responsibility of all Nigerian actors:  the electoral authorities, security agencies, political parties, candidates, religious leaders, civil society and voters.

The Secretary-General hopes that tomorrow’s elections will be transparent, inclusive, and peaceful.  The relevant national authorities must be accountable to the Nigerian people to ensure that this is the case.  The international community has high expectations that Nigeria will provide leadership in setting a high standard for this election.