European centre trains SIEC Chairpersons on leadership skills
The European Centre for Electoral Support ( ECES) has begun training of Chairpersons of the 36 State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs) on leadership and quality management skills for effective service delivery.
The Project Coordinator, ECES, Hamza Fassi-Fihri said during the opening of the five-day training on Monday in Akwanga, Nasarawa, that it was aimed at enhancing capacities of the chairmen of SIECs.
He said that it was also meant to strengthen their institutional abilities in conducting local elections.
“ESCE is a not-for-profit foundation headquartered in Brussels, promoting democracy and governance and specialises in providing technical assistance and guidance to Election Management Bodies (EMBs) around the world.
“We have been working in Nigeria since 2017 as part of the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) project which is dedicated to supporting INEC, Forum of State Independent Electoral Commission (FOSIECON) and SIECs.
“We believe in the importance of strong institutions, particularly the consolidation of local democracy and thus democracy in Nigeria,” he stated.
Fassi-Fihri further said that local democracy was indeed a key feature of vivid democracies as it allowed citizens to choose leaders who were closest to them and make decisions that affected their daily lives.
He urged the participants to use the knowledge gained during the training to deliver on their constitutional mandates.
The project coordinator thanked the European union for their constant support to ECES activities and for funding the programme.
In his keynote address, Gov. Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa, commended the ECES for organising the training.
Sule, represented by the state Commissioner for Special Duties and Legal, Mr Abubakar Imam, expressed optimism that the training would no doubt add value to electoral institutions and SIECs.
He charged the resource persons to do justice to their presentations and enjoined the participants to actively participate, in order to tap from the experience of the resource persons.
The governor reiterated the resolve of his administration to uphold the tenets of democracy for the overall development of the country.
In a goodwill message, Alhaji Ibrahim Bako, Chairman, FOSIECON, appreciated the ECES for organising the training .
He said the commission was ready to use the knowledge gained to strengthen electoral processes in the various states.
Earlier, Mr Ayuba Usman, the Chairperson, Nasarawa State Independent Electoral Commission (NASIEC) commended ECES and SIECs for the choice of the state for the programme.
The NASIEC chairman enjoined the participants to give the training the attention its deserved in their interest and for the overall development of the country.
