The presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, in the last general elections, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has condemned the unconstitutional removal of the President of Gabon, Ali Bongo, by the country’s military officers.
Atiku who was a former vice president of Nigeria during former president Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, in a statement on Thursday advised the leadership of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, to engage these soldiers diplomatically, thus convince them to return to the barracks.
Recall that Gabonese army officers, under the aegis of the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions, CTRI, on Wednesday, seized power and sacked Ali Bongo as President.
Ali Bongo is currently under house arrest according to TV reports yesterday.
Reacting to these recurring decimal called ‘coup’, Atiku in a statement condemned coup, noting that democracy has come to stay as a preferred form of government.
His words: “The coup in Gabon stands condemned. Democracy and democratic governance have come to stay as a preferred form of government, and everything should be done to enthrone, nurture, and sustain it.
“As I suggested in the case of the Niger Republic, the ECOWAS and African Union authorities should open a window of diplomatic engagement that will pave the way for the soldiers to return to the barracks.
The latest coup brings the number of military takeovers in Central and West Africa to 8 since 2020. This is worrisome and calls for introspection. We may have to focus on dealing with the disease and not the symptoms that birth coups”.
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