The Commonwealth has announced the appointment of Dr Kenny Anthony, Former Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, to lead its observer group for Mozambique’s October 9th general elections.
According to a Commonwealth release, the observer group will be in Mozambique from the 1st to the October 15th.
The release said in accepting the invitation from Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland, Anthony described it as an honor and privilege.
“I am grateful to be joined by eleven experts selected from across the Commonwealth who bring together a diversity of experience in the fields of elections, law, civil society, politics, human rights, and the media, amongst others,” the former Saint Lucia Prime Minister stated.
When observers arrive on October 1st, they will meet key stakeholders, including the election management body, political parties, civil society groups, media, the diplomatic community and other international and citizen observers.
From October 7th, observers will deploy in small teams to each province to observe electoral preparations and meet with local stakeholders in their respective locations.
On election day, the Group will observe the opening, voting, closing, counting, and the results management processes and will then issue an interim statement on its preliminary findings on October 11th, 2024.
The Commonwealth Secretariat said the group’s mandate is to observe and consider factors affecting the credibility of the electoral process as a whole and judge whether the elections have been according to the standards for democratic elections to which Mozambique has committed itself.
In addition to Dr. Anthony, the other members of the observer group are (in alphabetical order):
Ms Francine Baron, Former Foreign Minister, Dominica
Ms Pauline Welsh, former Director of Legal Affairs, Electoral Office of Jamaica, Jamaica
Hon Charles Keter, former Senator and Minister, Kenya
Dr Karabo Mokobocho-Mohlakoana, Commissioner, Independent Electoral Commission, Lesotho
Professor Danwood Chirwa, Dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Cape Town, Malawi
Ms Beverly Joeman, human rights activist and former Vice Chair of the Election Committee of the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH), Malaysia
Ms Zainab Bala, policy communication specialist and journalist, Nigeria
Mrs’ Ofa Guttenbeil-Likiliki, gender expert, founder of Women’s Action Group for Change and filmmaker, Tonga
Mr Alan Kasujja, host, Africa Daily Podcast, BBC News Uganda
Dr Alex Vines, Director, Africa Programme, Chatham House, United Kingdom
Mr Muleta Kapatiso, activist, lawyer, and development practitioner, Zambia
