- ATIKU CAUTIONS ON MILITARY ENGAGEMENT
The Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has dispatched a delegation to Niger Republic with a mandate to expeditiously resolve the current political impasse in the country.
The action according to the President was in line with the resolution reached at the end of the extraordinary summit of the ECOWAS held last weekend in Abuja.
The delegation, headed by former Nigerian Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, left for Niamey on Thursday following a briefing by President Tinubu at the State House in Abuja.
The former Nigerian Head of State is joined in the delegation by the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III and the President of the ECOWAS Commission, H.E. Omar Alieu Touray.
The President has also sent a separate delegation led by Ambassador Babagana Kingibe to engage with the leaders of Libya and Algeria on the Niger crisis.
Briefing the two delegations, President Tinubu charged them to engage all stakeholders robustly with a view to doing whatever it takes to ensure a conclusive and amicable resolution of the situation in Niger for the purposes of African peace and development rather than a move to adopt the geopolitical positions of other nations.
“We don’t want to hold brief for anybody. Our concern is democracy and the peace of the region,” the President said.
Speaking after the meeting, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (Rtd) said the delegation would meet the coup leaders in Niger to present the demands of the ECOWAS leadership.
Both leaders of the two missions expressed optimism on the outcome of the assignments.
Meanwhile, the PDP flagbearer in the just the February 25 General elections, Alh. Atiku Abubakar, has cautioned the Federal Government on military intervention in the Republic of Niger.
Atiku, said the impasse has created tension across the West Africa sub-region, and it is a development that has caused international attention to that neighbouring country of ours.
According to him, the putsch is even more worrisome because the number of states that have witnessed military intervention in the last three years in the subregion is increasing.
He said: “Of course, the world expects Nigeria to take up leadership in ensuring that the crisis of political leadership in the Republic of Niger is not just curtailed but also ensuring the restoration of democratic governance in that country.”
He added that the expectations that fall on Nigeria as the sub-regional leader is not a quick fix, it must be expressed that the role taken so far by the Economic Community of West African States has been commendable.
As the ECOWAS continues to work towards reinstating democracy in the Republic of Niger, Atiku, added that it must be reinforced that the regional body should not travel the road of military hostilities that may exacerbate the status quo.
“The crisis in the Republic of Niger requires diplomatic engagements, and that must mean that the channels for dialogue should be well sustained.” He said.
While the world expects Nigeria to take a leading role in this process of peaceful conflict resolution, it must be clear to the military insurrectionists in the Republic of Niger that the world cannot afford to wait for too long before this crisis is resolved reasonably.
This is undoubtedly a challenging time for the West African region. However, any actions taken towards the prompt resolution of the crisis in the Republic of Niger must prioritize democracy as the ultimate victor.
