THE Ministry of Foreign Affairs has refuted the reported rejection of Nigeria’s bid to be elected into the United Nations Human Rights Council by a section of the media.
According to a statement signed by the Minister’s Special Assistant, Media and Communication Strategy, Alkassim Abdulkadir, Thursday, the article was published in bad faith with several inaccuracies, misrepresenting the context and position of the country.
The statement read in fulll:
PRESS RELEASE
RE: Nigeria’s Rejection At The UNHRC
The Vanguard Newspaper on October 26, 2023, published an article entitled “Nigeria’s Rejection at the UNHRC” in which it was erroneously reported that Nigeria’s bid to be elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council was rejected while newer African countries were admitted into the Council.
The editorial read in parts; “ANOTHER indicator that Nigeria is not exactly smelling of roses on the global stage emerged on October 14, 2023, when we lost out in our bid to secure a seat at the prestigious United Nations Human Rights Council, UNHRC. Nigeria got only three votes, while fellow African nations like Ghana, Malawi, and Cote d’Ivoire amassed 197, 182, and 181 respectively as new members.”
The editorial was published in bad faith with several inaccuracies, misrepresenting the context and position of the country.
The fact of the matter is the Mission in New York, is the host of campaigns and elections of Member States to the UN Human Rights Council, though the Human Rights Council is domiciled in Geneva, it was their responsibility to inform the Office of the Spokesperson of UNHRC the true position of things which is that Nigeria never contested the election in the first instance, and we were not even on the ballot.
Nigeria had earlier signified interest to contest but later pulled out to allow Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire to vie for the two seats allocated to West Africa for consensus, and to ensure we have a clean slate in ECOWAS.
The government of Nigeria has signified interests to contest next year, to occupy the vacant position that would be available when Senegal completes its second term on the Council.
Nigeria’s candidature will be pursued in Geneva and other proper channels will be followed including -IOD, New York, and Addis Ababa will also be diligently informed of this development.
Journalists and media establishments should adhere to the tenets of journalism and stick to facts instead of misinforming and disinforming the public. The media owes citizens the responsibility to provide them with factual information.
Signed:
Alkasim Abdulkadir, Special Assistant on Media and Communication Strategy, To the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, 26, October, 2023