Jonathan to lead AU election mission to Botswana, departs Nigeria

While in Gaborone, the former president will hold consultations with different stakeholders including the leadership of the country, political parties, civil society, media and the diplomatic community.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan is billed to leave for Gaborone on Friday where he will be leading the African Union Election Observation Mission (AUEOM) to observe Botswana’s general elections scheduled to hold on 30 October.

Mr Jonathan will lead other distinguished leaders, including members of the African Union Permanent Representative Committee, Pan African Parliament (PAP), African Governance Platform, Election Management Bodies, independent election experts, civil society organisations, as well as women and youth who are all members of the mission.

While in Gaborone, the former president will hold consultations with different stakeholders, including the leadership of the country, political parties, civil society, media and the diplomatic community, in a bid to promote a credible, transparent and peaceful electoral process before, during and after the elections.

The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Mahamat, stated in a letter to Mr Jonathan that the former president was chosen for the role because of his “pan-African credentials and solid commitment to democracy and credible electoral processes in Africa.”

The general election will be the 13th since Botswana became independent in 1965 and will involve the election of 61 Members of Parliament and 609 Local Council Seats.

For Mr Jonathan, it will be the 5th time he will be leading AU Missions to observe elections in Africa since 2015, having led similar missions to Zambia, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

He has also led different election observation missions including the Commonwealth, ECOWAS, WAEF, Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) and International Summit Council for Peace (ISCP), since leaving office as Nigeria’s President in 2015.

Ikechukwu Eze

S.A. to H.E. Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan