By Favour Ulebor
Abuja-The European Union delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS has dismissed reports claiming it rejected an invitation from the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to observe Nigeria’s 2027 general elections over security concerns and alleged hostility towards its observers.
In a statement yesterday, the EU Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Gautier Mignot, described the reports as inaccurate and clarified that the EU had not declined INEC’s invitation but had instead informed the electoral body of its decision to deploy an Electoral Expert Mission, EEM, for the polls.
The clarification followed media reports alleging that the EU had declined an invitation to observe Nigeria’s 2027 elections due to security challenges and concerns arising from the aftermath of its observations of the 2023 general election.
According to the ambassador, the EU received a formal invitation from INEC on April 17, 2026, to observe the elections and responded on July 28, 2026, thanking the commission for the invitation and notifying it of its decision to field an Electoral Expert Mission made up of two to four independent experts.
