According to the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), the recent coups in Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali do not reflect well on the West African area and its people.
Dr Chris Kwaja, Country Director of USIP, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja that this was the case.
Kwaja stated that every African nation should prioritise peace, security, and stability over unconstitutional government changes.
“Africa is at a crossroads right now, and the desire for peace, security, and stability is one of the most basic of any average African, and the international community is also putting these at the forefront of its policy directions.”
“It takes governance to achieve peace, security, and stability, but across Africa today, we have seen coups in Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Guinea, and that, on its own, does not reflect well on the region, West Africa, or the people.”
“It is not just about national or regional security alone, but also about human security in the context of uncertainty that citizens of West Africa are now afraid of because we don’t know which country will be next,” he said.
Kwaja stated that it relies on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) as the regional body to be aware of its obligations to ensure stability in its region by assessing the quality of governance.
According to him, the ECOWAS organisation must ponder on why coups occur; it does not encourage coups, so why do they occur?
“ECOWAS should be able to ask whether these are the products or consequences of poor governance or disenchantment or discontent among citizens.”
“When you look at some of the countries where these coups are taking place, they present a face of copulism, as if citizens are pleased with the emergence of the military.”
“But, no matter how good a military regime is, democracy is still the best way to go,” he added, adding that “we need to take a second look at the quality of governance, democracy, and particularly in the context of elections.”
The country director stated that the military coup was not the only one occurring in the region, and that any attempt to change constitutionally designed processes, including attempts to extend tenure, was a coup.
He also stated that actions by leaders to undercut democratic processes for the formation of leaders constituted a civilian coup.
In order to attract peace, security, and stability to the continent, he recommended African countries to prioritise good governance and the rule of law.
