In a crucial development on the political situation in Niger Republic, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has written to the Nigerian Senate, informing them of the coup that took place in the neighboring country.
During Friday’s plenary session, Senate President Godswill Akpabio read out the letter titled “Implementation of the resolutions of the Economic Committee of West African States (ECOWAS) on the political situation in Niger Republic.”
In the letter, President Tinubu conveyed his “modest compliments” to the distinguished Senate President and senators and proceeded to outline the actions taken by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) following the unfortunate overthrow of Niger’s democratically elected President Mohammed Bazoum on July 26, 2023.
The ECOWAS, under President Tinubu’s leadership, strongly condemned the coup and joined hands with the international community to seek the restoration of the democratically elected government in Niger.
To that end, an extraordinary summit of the authority of Heads of States and Governments was convened on July 30, 2023, in Abuja.
During the summit, the ECOWAS issued a communiqué outlining the line of action to be taken by member states to broker peace and restore democracy in Niger.
As the Chair of ECOWAS, Nigeria has the responsibility to lead the implementation of the directives outlined in the communique.
President Tinubu revealed that he has directed all relevant government agencies, including military and paramilitary agencies, to take specific actions in response to the coup and in line with the ECOWAS communique:
- Closure and monitoring of all land borders with Niger Republic, including the reactivation of the border drill exercise.
- Cutting off electricity supply to Niger Republic.
- Mobilizing international support for the implementation of the ECOWAS provisions.
- Preventing the operation of commercial and special flights into and from Niger Republic.
- Blockade of goods in transit to Niger Republic, especially from Lagos and the Eastern seaports.
- Embarking on sensitization campaigns for Nigerians on the importance of these actions, particularly through social media.
- Military build-up and deployment of personnel for possible military intervention should the military junta in Niger remain recalcitrant to the ECOWAS communique.
