Political parties in Niger signed a peace agreement, committing themselves to a peaceful, transparent, and credible election in the state.

The parties signed the agreement at a meeting convened by police commissioner Adamu Elleman ahead of the council elections scheduled for November 1, according to a statement.

The political parties and their aspirants were led by the Inter-Party Advisory Council chairman for the Niger chapter, Isah Makujeri. Other stakeholders included the chairman of the Niger Independent Electoral Commission, Mohammed Imam, and the special adviser to the state governor on political affairs, Nma Kolo. Also in attendance were representatives of security agencies.

Mr Elleman stated that the gathering was aimed at fostering maturity, responsibility, and collective commitment to peace among all stakeholders. He also spelled out the terms and conditions as provided in the peace accord to ensure credible elections.

The police commissioner added that the command and other security agencies, in partnership with the NSIEC, have made comprehensive arrangements to provide a secure and peaceful environment for the election.

Mr Elleman urged the youths and party supporters to be ambassadors of peace by refraining from being used as tools for electoral violence.

He also added that the constitutional duty of the police was to protect and not to intimidate, and as such, rest assured of the command’s readiness to exhibit professionalism and provide security before, during, and after the election.

In his remarks, Mr Imam commended the cooperation of all parties so far. He said a 15-point agenda was developed, including guidelines for the election process.

“The agenda is aimed at producing 24 Local Government chairmen and 274 councillors from 4,950 polling units,” said Mr Imam.

He urged all participants to take the accord signing seriously and abide by its provisions, as it was an oath. The NSIEC chairman also commended the IPAC for its role as a mediator. He assured that adequate measures had been put in place by SIEC and security agencies.

Also, the IPAC chairman commended NSIEC for providing ample time of six months to make the necessary preparations and appreciated key stakeholders, stating that the election process in the state had been peaceful so far.

He stressed that, in line with Governor Muhammad Bago’s mandate, whoever wins the election should be declared the winner to ensure a smooth, credible process.

Mr Makujeri also commended the police for the successful conduct of the Munya bye-election and hoped that the upcoming Local Government elections would be even more peaceful.

(NAN)