The vice president, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, has called for stringent measures to be taken against any African country where a government is replaced unconstitutionally.
Osinbajo made the call yesterday at the Extraordinary Summit of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) member states on the political situation in the Republics of Guinea and Mali held in Accra, Ghana.
The vice president who represented President Muhammadu Buhai at the summit called on the Africa Union, European Union, United Nations, developmental partners, financial institutions and other stakeholders to support his stance.
He called for the unconditional release of President Alpha Condé and more pressure to be put on the country’s military leaders to return the nation to democratic rule.
“It is also important that ECOWAS should simply insist that there should be an immediate return to civil rule.
“In this connection, I think we should engage all well-meaning stakeholders including the Africa Union, European Union, United Nations, developmental partners, and financial institutions to join in taking more stringent measures by imposing travel bans and freezing of offshore financial assets of the coupists and their collaborators to ensure that they do return the country to democracy immediately,” he said.
Calling for more stringent measures to be taken by the sub-regional body, Osinbajo said “we must make sure that sanctions by ECOWAS achieve the intended objectives.
Osinbajo also restated the call to engage global bodies and Africa’s development partners in taking steps to prevent such unconstitutional change of government in countries on the continent.
Determined to ensure a prompt return of democratic rule to Guinea after the recent military coup, he called on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to insist on a short transition programme that will usher in a new civilian government in that country.
Although he noted that the coup leaders in Guinea had started consultation with critical stakeholders towards transition to civil rule, the vice president reiterated Nigeria’s stance, condemning military intervention and unconstitutional change of government in the West African country.
He therefore called on the junta “to transparently restore constitutional order without delay,” and that “such a process should be led by a civilian.”
“While we condemn the development in Guinea, and affirm that no matter how popular the grievance against an elected leadership may be, the forceful seizure of power is an unacceptable assault on the dignity of a free people and their right to freely elect their leaders.
“We nevertheless must strongly urge all ECOWAS Member States to respect the principles of democracy and the constitutions of our respective countries,” he added.
On the update of the situation in Mali, Osinbajo again commended former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan “for his continued commitment and engagement with the various stakeholders in Mali.”
He commended the efforts of stakeholders in resolving the conflict in that West African country and restated the call of leaders of the sub-region to the Malian transition government to strictly respect and follow the electoral time table for transition to civil rule.
“I further call for the continued support and collaboration of all major players in the country’s March towards a successful transition,” he said.
At the end of the summit, the ECOWAS leaders issued a communiqué.
The document reads: After consideration of the report and subsequent deliberations, the authority decides as follows:
*to uphold the suspension of Guinea from all ECOWAS governing bodies until the restoration of constitutional order;
*to ensure the conduct of presidential and legislative elections within six (6) months in order to restore constitutional rule in the Republic of Guinea;
*to impose sanctions, in accordance with extant ECOWAS Protocols, of travel bans on the members of the CNRD (the Guinean military junta) and their family members and to freeze their financial assets.”
The extraordinary session was chaired by the ECOWAS chairman and president of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Aside from Osinbajo, the session was also attended by eight Presidents and four foreign affairs ministers representing heads of state, former Nigerian President and ECOWAS Mediator on Mali, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan; the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Jean-Claude Kassi Brou; the special representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for West Africa, among others.
