MONROVIA, Montserrado – The Carter Center, an international organization monitoring Liberia’s election, has called on the National Elections Commission to take steps in addressing challenges to improve situations in future elections in the country.
In a preliminary statement issued on Thursday, the mission said while NEC has acknowledged difficulties with long lines and queue management at polling precincts, the commission must also offer precinct staff enhanced instructions on the issues before another round of elections.
The group said while it observed that NEC officials were proactive in visiting polling stations to resolve problems that arose on the day of elections, it encourages the commission to continue to react promptly on others that may happen during the tabulation of results.
“Transparency is crucial in an election, and the center urges the NEC to continue its efforts to ensure that the tabulation process is transparent at all levels and that the public is provided the information it needs to fully understand the process,†the statement read.
In the interest of building confidence, the center called for a prompt release of results, including at the polling place level, with clear indication of the counties and percentage of precinct reporting. The commission had been initially slow to release results and its first set of results had not been presented in an easily digestible format. More recently released results on the commission’s website have had the data in better format.
At the same time, the Carter Center has called on political parties to uphold their responsibility to ensure that their supporters maintain peace throughout the electoral processes and the transition that will follow.
The center has commended citizens for their enthusiasm and determination to peacefully express their will through the democratic means.
On polling day, the mission said its 50 observers from 17 countries visited at least 145 of the total polling stations across the country to observe voting and counting of ballots.
The Carter Center’s mission is led by the former president of Central African Republic, Catherine Sama-Panza; the head of the organization’s Board of Trustees, Jason Carter; and its vice president for peace programs, Jordan Ryan.
At the invitation of the government of Liberia and political stakeholders, the Carter Center began its observation mission with pre-election assessment visits starting in 2016 and during the voter registration process in March and April this year.
In addition to the election day observers, the center worked with a core team of electoral experts and six long-term observers from five countries who assessed election preparations throughout the country. A final statement is expected at the end of the process when final results are announced.
Watch the press conference below:
Featured photo by Aaron Nah
