Liberia’s Elections Commission Launches 2017 Count Down

Sarah Toe

The National Elections Commission has launched the Countdown to the upcoming 2017 Presidential and Representative Elections.

NEC Acting Chairperson Sarah Toe used the launching occasion to call on all media houses to join the Commission in building and creating awareness on the elections which she termed as very important to the current democratic history of Liberia.

“As of Today, Sunday May 29, 2016, the Presidential and Representative Elections of October 10, 2017 is exactly 499 days away.” Cllr. Toe said, adding that the countdown is in keeping with Article 83(a) of the constitution of Liberia.

“As you may all be aware, the National Elections Commission (NEC) will in October 2017 conduct the 3rd post war Presidential and Representative Election in Liberia.

 “The 2017 Elections will be conducted in concert with Article 83 (a) of the Constitution of Liberia which states that voting for the President, members of the Senate and members of the House of Representatives shall be conducted throughout the Republic on the Second Tuesday in October of each election year”, the NEC Acting Chairperson said.

Cllr. Toe continued: “Therefore, the commission, in compliance with this constitutional provision will conduct said Elections on Tuesday, October 10, 2017.This date has been highlighted in the Timeline of the 2017 elections.”

The Electoral body has taken several measures to effectively communicate to voters and stakeholders in the sector aimed at conducting transparent elections.

Commissioner Toe also launched the refurbished website, new logo, facebook and Twitter pages of NEC in order to facilitate citizens access to information about the electoral process and the upcoming elections.

“In order to effectively create awareness around the 2017 Elections, the Commission, as part of its public awareness strategy, is today launching the Countdown to the 2017,” Cllr. Toe said.

Commissioner Toe also launched the new logo, reconstructed website and social media platforms of the commission.

“Other important elements of today’s program are the launch of the new logo of the Commission, the launch of the reconstructed website of the NEC as well as the launch of the facebook and Twitter of the Commission”, the NEC Commissioner said.

Cllr. Toe added that the new logo of the NEC is a transparent ballot box with a red lid complemented with the letters ‘NEC’ written in bold blue capital letters.

The Acting head of NEC Said, the new logo is part of a process in which the Commission is seeking to develop a more consistent corporate image to highlight its role as an Independent Electoral Management Body (EMB).

“The website of the National Elections Commission was constructed since 2010 and taking into consideration the advancement in technology, the need arose to have it reconstructed to enable it conform to current reality.

Against this background, USAID through IFES hired a local consultant to reconstruct the website which is now transformed and would be launched today,” Cllr. Toe said.

“In an era of greater transparency and authenticity, social media is rapidly delivering a new standard of interaction among people and so, today the Commission is also launching its social media platforms, specifically Facebook and Twitter platforms.

These platforms will present a whole new paradigm for effectively disseminating civic and voter education messages to the public as we move closer to the 2017 elections,” Cllr. Toe added.