The
European Union Observation Mission to Nigeria says soldiers barred
them from monitoring elections in Rivers State.
The
observers made the allegation in their preliminary report in Abuja on
Monday.
Addressing
journalists, the Chief Observer, Maria Arena, noted that they came to Nigeria
on the invitation of INEC to monitor the elections and make recommendations.
Arena,
who is a member of the EU Parliament, however, faulted the elections.
She
said, “Observers, including EU observers, were denied access to collation
centres in Rivers, apparently by military personnel. This lack of access for
observers compromises transparency and trust in the process.
“In
Rivers, INEC suspended until further notice the elections due to violence in
polling units and collation centres, staff being taken hostage and election
materials, including results sheets, seized or destroyed by unauthorised
persons.
“There
is no doubt that the electoral process there was severely compromised.”
Arena
lamented the violence, underage voting and vote-buying that marred the
governorship and House of Assembly elections in some states.
She
said the EU deployed 73 observers following voting, counting and the collation
of results in 22 states.
The
chief observer said they monitored 223 polling units in 81 collation centres.
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