9/5/2003
Preliminary Statement of the EU Election Observation Mission (EOM) to Nigeria

External Commissioner Chris Patten has declared: "I believe that the honest and professional assessment of the election process made by the European Union Electoral Observation Mission, will contribute to the process of strengthening democratic values in Nigeria and I would like to express my gratitude to the leader of the EU observers, MEP Max Van den Berg, and to his team for their excellent work. I hope that all legitimate complaints related to these elections will be dealt with according to the Nigerian legal system. I also hope that the recommendations made by the EU Mission will be taken into account with a view to improving the election framework in Nigeria for the future and to putting down ever deeper roots for Nigeria's democracy."

The EU EOM started its work on 11 March and will stay in the country until mid-May to observe the election appeal process. The EU EOM deployed more than 100 observers on each of the three polling days: Parliamentary elections (12 April), Presidential and Gubernatorial elections (19 April) and State Houses of Assembly elections (3 May).

The EU EOM is an independent body formed by observers from EU Member States and led by a Member of the European Parliament. It has based its conclusions on its own direct findings, collected through a professional and internationally recognised methodology. The EU EOM will shortly release its Final Report, which will contain recommendations for improvement of the election framework in a spirit of partnership, also in the light of serious irregularities and fraud observed by the EU EOM in a number of Nigerian States.

The Preliminary Statement of the European Union Election Observation Mission on the on State Houses of Assembly elections in Nigeria is now available at : http://www.eueomnigeria.org/