Speaking at a press conference held on Friday, 30 September 2016 at Praia, Yayi Boni said that this Presidential election is expected to be the culmination of success achieved at the end of local and legislative elections organised by Cabo Verde in 2016.

The Former President of Benin made the statement at the end of a meeting, in the morning, at the Presidential Palace with Cabo Verde’s Interim President, Jorge Santos.

Yayi Boni and Jorge Santos talked about the consolidation of the Rule of Law and Democracy as well as the consolidation of the electoral process in Africa in general,   but particularly in the ECOWAS region and Cabo Verde.

According to Cabo Verde’s Interim President as reported by Yayi Boni, out of 23 recently organised elections in Africa, 18 resulted in protests, violence, loss of human life, destruction of infrastructure and looting.

The Former President of Benin called on candidates namely, political party leaders and their supporters to ensure that the Presidential Election scheduled for Sunday 2 October 2016 holds in peace, tranquility and national cohesion.

“My wish is that at the end of the vote count, on Sunday evening 1st October 2016, the candidate that lost the election should call the President-elect to congratulate him. I expect him to be open to dialogue, peace and make everybody participate in the running of the country, because without peace, there will never be common prosperity” intimated Yayi Boni.

The Head of the ECOWAS Election Observation Mission for the 2016 Presidential Election in Cabo Verde commended the calm and peace prevailing in the country, few hours to the end of the electoral campaign on Friday, 30 September 2016.

On that Friday evening, Yayi Boni met the Head of the African Union Election Observation Mission for the 2016 Presidential Election in Cabo Verde, Former Transitional President of Guinea Bissau, Manuel Serifo Nhamadjo.

Discussions between both personalities centred on the success of their respective missions in Cabo Verde and common actions to be adopted with a view to ensuring the smooth conduct of the electoral process leading to a free, transparent and credible election on  Sunday, 2 October  2016.

In this regard, the two Heads of Mission considered the possibility of issuing a joint statement at the end of the election, or otherwise harmonise the declaration of their respective missions.

Yayi Boni and Manuel Serifo Nhamadjo also talked about the consolidation of the ECOWAS Protocol and the African Union Charter on democracy and good governance for greater transparency in the organisation of elections in West Africa and Africa as a whole.

They also discussed the harmonisation of the legal framework governing elections in Africa to enable the continent benefit from best practices in elections.

During meetings held with Cabo Verde’s Interim President, Jorge Santos alongside the Head of the African Union Election Observation Mission, Manuel Serifo Nhamadjo, Yayi Boni was accompanied by a Technical Assistance Team from the ECOWAS Commission.

The team was made up of the ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Mrs. Halima Ahmed, the Director of Political Affairs, Dr. Remi Ajibewa, the Head of the Election Assistance Division, Francis Oké and other Staff of the ECOWAS Commission.