US Vice President Joe Biden
The United States government has
thrown its weight behind the Independent National Electoral Commission
to use the Permanent Voter Cards and the smart card readers in the March
28 and April 11 elections.
The introduction of the PVC and the SCR
for use in the 2015 general elections has been a subject of hot debate
and litigation in the country.
The American government conveyed its approval of the card readers through Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday.
Biden spoke with Nigerian President
Goodluck Jonathan, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party and the
presidential candidate of the opposition All Progressives Congress, Maj.
Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) on the forthcoming election, a statement
on Thursday by the US embassy in Nigeria indicated.
The US Vice President commended
President Jonathan and Buhari for signing the Abuja Peace Accord in
mid-January, describing it as a show of their commitment to non-violence
throughout the election process.
The statement read in part, “The Vice
President further expressed the United States’ support for the Nigerian
Independent National Electoral Commission and its work to deliver free,
fair, and credible elections, in part through its essential efforts to
distribute Permanent Voter Cards and help ensure that electronic voter
card readers are in place and fully operational.”
Biden also registered his concern on the
violence recorded during some recent election-related events and
re-emphasised the need for both presidential candidates to make clear
that such violence had no place in a democratic process.
The US vice president stated further
that the American government would stand with the Nigerian people in
support of credible and peaceful elections, and would continue to stand
with the Nigerian people whatever the outcome of the presidential poll.
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