By Emmanuel Nduka
In the aftermath of the bloodless coup that ousted Niger’s President, Mohamed Bazoum, Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, is leading a meeting of Chiefs of Defence Staff from 15 ECOWAS countries in Abuja, the Nigerian capital.
The meeting which was holding on Wednesday, August 2, 2023 at the Nigerian Defence Headquarters as at the time of writing this report, was a platform to discuss the political situation in Niger Republic.
Heritage Times HT reports that while Defence Chiefs of Nigeria, Benin, Ghana, Togo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, The Gambia, Cote D’Ivoire, Cabo Verde, and Senegal were present, those from Niger, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, and Guinea Bissau were conspicuously absent, a development indicating the countries’ opposition to ECOWAS’ stance on the coup in Niger.
Expectedly, the Committee of Defence Chiefs will deliberate on the political crisis and work towards a resolution within the seven-day ultimatum issued by the ECOWAS leadership on Sunday. The outcome could either stabilize Niger or escalate tensions to war mode.
It would be recalled that the President Bola Tinubu-chaired ECOWAS had on Sunday during an extraordinary summit of the Authority of Heads of State and Government, issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Military junta in Niger to revert back to the status quo or risk consequences including a possible military action and economic sanctions.
