The Federation of Liberian Youth (FLY) and Connected Development Initiative (CODE) have entered a partnership to monitor Liberia’s October 10 election.
The two groups consummated the dear on Wednesday, August 23, 2023 during a press conference convened at the Boulevard Palace in Monrovia.
CODE’s Chief Executive Officer, Hamzat Lawal at the start of the conference praised Liberians mainly the young people for maintaining Liberia’s peace for twenty years, a trance he wants other African countries to duplicate.
He said their visit to Liberia is intended to work with young people through FLY to monitor the country’s election.
Mr. Lawal said they as an institution in partnership with FLY will focus on Liberia’s election looking at the process of elections itself, the operations of the National Elections Commission, National Security Agencies as well as the marginalized groups.
According to him, they are interested in pre-election incidents, election-day activities as well and post-election selection.
CODE according to its CEO operating in eleven African countries and have successfully monitored elections in Kenya, United States of America and Nigeria.
Lawal said their partnership with the Federation of Liberian Youth is to also ensure that processes that will trigger elections violence such as insightful comments to exposed and reported in a drive to save guard the peace process.
“We will want an outcome of the elections that will be peaceful, an integrity and transparent outcome that will be satisfactory to the Liberian people” he intoned.
He said they as partners envisioned an outcome that will be accepted and embraced by the people as they all work collectively towards deepening Liberia’s democracy.
Under the partnership, CODE will deploy a technology tool called UZABE, a real time technology data drive platform that will look at real time happenings at various elections centers and will report as they unfold.
“We will train FLY observers to have the tools and skills necessary to send in reports in real time especially when elections related incidents occurred”, he narrated.
For her part, the President of the Federation of Liberian Youth, Banica S. Elliott commended CODE timely and significant partnership especially ahead of the October 10, 2023 election in Liberia.
She pledged FLY’s commitment to the partnership and assured her partner that the young people are willing and prepare to work in ensuring the peace of the Country is sustained and maintained.
“This election requires the young people’s commitment in upholding the peace of Liberia” she said.
According to her, the young people of Liberia constituting approximately 70% of the Country’s population remain overly committed to protect and defend the jealous peace and democracy of the Country.
According to her, FLY is blessed to such a partnership with CODE stating, “we will work in collaboration to achieve one goal and we hope that the outcome of the elections will be a true representation of the people themselves.”
FLY will establish a Youth Situation Room that will collect real time data from its observers on the field and will report on various happenings about the elections across the fifteen political subdivisions of the Country.
She told her partner (CODE) that FLY has rolled out some elections related programs to include: the monitoring of the just ended Biometric voters registration process, the signing of the Butuo Declaration, a commitment for young political actors to keep the elections peaceful and not to return the Country and its people the dark and ugly past.
