The mission of the Oregon Voter Rights Coalition is to restore public ownership and oversight of elections, and to ensure the fundamental right of every American citizen to vote and to have each vote counted as intended in a secure, transparent, impartial, and independently verified election process.
Elections - U.S. Government Advocates Transparency
Submitted by Deb on Sat, 03/24/2007 - 12:34pm.
This Day (Lagos)
NEWS
March 23, 2007
Posted to the web March 23, 2007
By Onwuka Nzeshi
Abuja
for original article
The United States Government yesterday tasked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure transparency and adhere strictly to the rule of law in the conduct of the forthcoming general elections in Nigeria. It specifically urged the electoral commission to obey court rulings on the disqualification and substitution of candidates in order to boost the credibility of the April 14 and 21 2007 polls.
The United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. John Campbell made the position of his home government known at the dedication ceremony of the newly built American International School, Abuja (AISA) located in the Durumi District of the Federal Capital Territory.
According to the envoy, the United States Government has provided $15 million assistance to ensure the success of the Nigerian general elections and was watching with keen interest to see Nigeria transit successfully from one democratic government to another through the ballot box.
He observed that though most of the issues of disqualification of candidates were presently in courts, the American Government was concerned that the rule of law and transparency should be allowed to prevail as that was the only way to convince the world that the processes leading to the elections and the elections themselves were transparent and democratic.
On the ongoing agitations by a section of the political class that the 2007 elections be postponed and an interim government be set up to organize the elections, Campbell said that such proposal should only be guided by the Nigeria Constitutional and the popular will of the people.
Former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, Minister of Education, Mrs. Obiageli Ezekwesili, and FCT Minister, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, jointly unveiled a plaque to mark the formal dedication of the American International School of Abuja dedication.
The school, which sits on about 13 acres of land, has all modern facilities for the education of the child including a library with over 7,000 books, information technology facilities and air-conditioned classrooms.
The school is a US State Department assisted international day school based on the American educational system. A group of parents with the assistance from the US Embassy obtained approval to open the school in September 1993.
The Middle States Association and many of the teaching accredit it and administrative staff is certified in the US, Canada and Europe.It has 31 classrooms, two science laboratories, a health clinic, a computer laboratory, a swimming pool and other sports facilities.
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