A Joint Solidarity Mission of ECOWAS, the African Union, and United Nations has urged stakeholders in the Ivorian elections to promote dialogue and commit to a credible, transparent, and inclusive polls on October 31.
It urged Ivorians in general to respect each other’s rights and take into account the preventive measures to curb the spread of the Covid-19.
The Joint Mission was to provide Ivorian stakeholders with an additional high level consultative platform in addition to ongoing efforts to establish communication and interaction among political actors to agree on consensual commitments for an inclusive, transparent and peaceful presidential election.
The delegation of the Mission comprised Madam Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, and Chairperson of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers; Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel, Mrs Minata Samate Cessouma, Commissioner for Political Affairs of the Africa Union; and General Francis A. Behanzin, ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security.
Mr Patrice Kouame, Executive Secretary of the Council of the Entente, also participated in the Mission at the invitation of the President of the ECOWAS Commission.
A Communique issued at the end of the visit, from October 4-7, as part of preventive diplomacy efforts, said the Mission was received in audience by President Alassane Ouattara in Abidjan, who expressed his gratitude for the manifestation of international solidarity with the Ivory Coast.
He reaffirmed his determination to promote peace in the country and the entire sub-region.
In that regard, he assured the Mission that he would spare no efforts to ensure the holding of a credible, inclusive, transparent and peaceful presidential election on October 31.
The joint Mission held consultations with various institutional actors including the Prime Minister, the Ministers of Territorial Administration and Decentralization, Security and Civil Protection, as well as the presidents of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and the Constitutional Council on the state of preparation for the presidential election.
The Mission welcomed the progress made so far to ensure that the results would be accepted by all.
It, however, expressed concern over the lack of trust among the political actors and condemned the acts of violence and hate speech with ethnic overtones, which could have a negative impact on the progress made so far.
The Mission encouraged the IEC to continue meetings with the various candidates to find solutions to the outstanding issues.
It urged them to review and comply with the existing Code of Conduct for Political Parties, Political Forces and Election candidates to create an environment conducive for the election.
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