As Liberia prepares for its upcoming senatorial elections, a new group comprising of experts on election-related issues has been set up to provide civic and voter education, and also monitor electoral activities in the volatile East African country.
The second election monitoring organization other than the Election Coordination Committee (ECC), this new group, the Center for Development and Election Management (CEDEM) comprises of well-known experts in the region including former National Elections Commission Chairman, James M. Fromayan, former NEC Commissioner Jonathan Weedor, and others including Lucia Massalee Yallah of the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Center for Women and Development, Edwin W. Sarvice of the Program Delivery Unit (PDU) of former President Sirleaf, A. Blamoh Sieh, a former civil society leader and Civic Education Director at the NEC, and Yarsah G. Karmo-Fallah, former Assistant Superintendent for Development in Gbarpolu County.
Formally known as the Edward Wilmot Blyden Center for Research and Development, CEDEM seeks to work hand-in-hand with Liberia’s official elections umpire, the National Elections Commission (NEC) to ensure that elections are free, fair and transparent. The organization will do this by focusing on the areas of civic and voter education, election observation and monitoring, consulting services to political parties and independent candidates, electoral law reform, and women participation in the electoral process.
“For the pending special Senatorial Election, there is a compelling need to intervene in order to ensure the conduct of a viable civic and voter education exercise. Liberia being a country of more than eighty per cent illiteracy rate, the conduct of intensive civic and voter education would enable Liberians to make informed decisions. With reference to election observation and monitoring, the need is even more urgent,” it said ahead of the impending senatorial polls.
This comes as Liberia continues to deal with election violence that has left several people injured and countless properties destroyed. Its midterm senatorial elections have been scheduled for December 8, 2020.
