Former President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo will lead a Commonwealth election observer team to The Gambia.

The nine-person Commonwealth Observer Group has been sent on the invitation of the Independent Electoral Commission of The Gambia. 

The Observer Group will consider all aspects of the December 4 presidential election process and determine whether the elections are conducted in line with democratic standards to which The Gambia has committed itself.

It will submit its final report for consideration by the Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Patricia Scotland, and she will in turn share it with the Government of The Gambia and stakeholders.

“The deployment of this observer group is a demonstration of the Commonwealth’s commitment to supporting electoral democracy in member countries and a recognition of the right of individuals to participate in democratic processes, through credible, inclusive and transparent elections in shaping their societies,” said Baroness Scotland. 

The Commonwealth Observer Group members include Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria, (Chairperson); Prosper Bani, former Minister of Interior, Ghana; Martha Karua, former Minister of Justice, Kenya; Robert Phiri, Executive Director, Public Affairs Commission, Malawi; Hendrick Gappy, former chairperson, Electoral Commission, Seychelles; Shyamala Gomez, Executive Director, Centre for Equality and Justice, Sri Lanka; Candia Dames, Executive Editor of the Nassau Guardian,The Bahamas; Crispin Kaheru, Commissioner, Uganda Human Rights Commission, Uganda and Musa Mwenye QC Former Attorney General, Zambia.

This is the first time the Commonwealth has dispatched an election observer team to The Gambia since the overthrow of the Jawara government in 1994.