Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa state has urged international bodies to prevail on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security forces to be neutral in November 16 governorship election.
The governorship made the call while receiving the Deputy Chief of U.S Missions in Nigeria, Kathleen Fitzgibbon, Thursday in Yenagoa.
According to his Special Adviser on Public Affairs Mr Daniel Alabrah, Dickson thanked U.S and friends of Nigeria for their interest in the conduct of elections in the country, especially the electoral process.
Though the governor said the processes leading to the elections were more important than the outcome, he appealed to them to plead with the INEC to conduct transparent and credible election on November 16.
He urged the international community to pay special attention to the state and not limit their scope to Lagos and Abuja.
“We call on your mission to show more support to the agencies of state, INEC, the law enforcement agencies and to keep making the point about the need for neutrality.
“We also urge your mission to use its very wonderful network and access to raise these concerns. I look forward to working with you and your team in the area of information sharing.
“In the area of letting people know when we see the red flags, very often, those red flags are ignored, and the red flags are all there. Your interest is legitimate to me,” Dickson said.
The governor also appealed to the mission to dialogue with the opposition parties in the state to propagate a violence-free governorship election.
Dickson, who called for understanding and partnership in peace building and development, said the poll was about his successor and the legacies.
Earlier, Fitzgibbon said that the delegation was in the state to ascertain the challenges that could hinder the conduct of the upcoming governorship election in the state.
Fitzgibbon assured that the mission was focussed on engaging the Federal Government, international community and other critical stakeholders to ensure peaceful, credible, fair and hitch-free election in the state.
The Deputy Chief of Missions, who said she visited Bayelsa last 19 years ago, however, commended Dickson for his developmental strides, which she said had hugely transformed the landscape of the state. (NAN)
