By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
Senegalese leader, President Macky Sall and his Cote d’Ivoire counterpart, Alassane Dramane Quattara, have said they are fully committed to any action taken by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to restore democratic rule in the Niger Republic after coup plotters ousted President Mohamed Bazoum in a Palace coup.
President Sall told State House Correspondents after the 2nd Extraordinary Summit held at Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday that he wholeheartedly supports the action that has been proposed by ECOWAS.
He insists that ECOWAS will not be cowed to allow the regime change to stand and that the body will make every effort to make sure that constitutional order returns to Niger.
“I support the action that has been proposed by ECOWAS that we do not accept this attempted coup d’tar to stand and that we make every effort to make sure that constitutional order returns to Niger.
“If we had made mistakes in the past, we should try to correct them now. There is always a time to get started. I think it was a mistake not to have taken action previously, but now that we are together on this we should take action to make sure that it does not continue”.
In the same vein, President Alassane Dramane Quattara insists his country Cote d’Ivoire stands with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in its quest to restore democratic rule in Niger Republic.
This is even as he said he and his brother Heads of State and Government of the sub-regional body comprising 16 countries have unanimously agreed to use military force to restore constitutional order if the junta refused to reinstate President Mohamed Bazoum.
His words, “We had a very good summit. We thank President Tinubu for having invited us, for his hospitality and the people of Nigeria.
“As you’re aware this is the second summit in 10 days that we have organized in Niger and this is a critical problem we have to solve. As you’re aware, ECOWAS has taken many decisions in the past, legal and factual about coup d’etats and the community has always condemned coup d’ètats and coup d’ètat have happened in many countries in the sub-region.
ECOWAS has intervened in the past in Liberia, Sierra Leone recently in Gambia, Guinea Bissau and today we have a similar situation in Niger. I’d like to say that ECOWAS cannot accept this.
This is not a matter of Nigeria against Niger, not at all. The decision that we have made today and I hope it will be implemented immediately is a decision of ECOWAS. All the heads of states think that we have tried dialogue with the putschists.
We have sent a delegation, high personalities like former President Abdulsalami Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto, Emir of Kano, former governor of CBN Sanusi, my friend and many other personalities in this important country, to talk to the people of Niger.
But they’re keeping President Bazoum as a hostage. I personally consider this as a terrorist act. And we cannot let this continue. We have to act.
The position of Côte d’Ivore God which has been endorsed by all of the Head of states is that we have been able to tell these putschists that their place is in the barracks. They should go to fight the terrorists and not try to kidnap a democratically elected president.
So we believe that for the credibility of ECOWAS, all of us are concerned and involved in this decision.
So I’d like to thank my former ECOWAS President Tom Barlow. He himself is a former general democratically elected now to serve the democracy in our sub region. We do not accept, we will not accept coup d’ètats and I think these putschists must go if they don’t let Bazoum out to be able to exercise his mandate. I think we should move ahead and get them out. Bazoum is the democratically elected president. He should be freed, he should be able to exercise his mandate freely.
