Coup d’états: Risks of upsetting democracy and African solutions

Coup d’états: Risks of upsetting democracy and African solutions

Emmanuel Oloniruha of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) provides a news analysis.
Recent events in West Africa demonstrate the threat to democracy and sound governance in the region. The military coups in Mali, Chad, Burkina Faso, Sudan, and the Niger Republic highlighted how difficult it would be to lift West Africa out of its infrastructure and globalisation crises of poverty.

The West African nations of Mali (August 2020 and May 2021), Guinea (September 2021), Burkina Faso (January and September 2022), and the Niger Republic (June 2023) have all experienced coup d’états in the past three years. In each nation, military governments are still in power.

The causes of this wave include regional instability, inadequate leadership by elected officials, and a history of numerous successful coups.

A day after President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita was detained, according to a report by the Foreign Policy Research Institute, Mali’s Committee for the Salvation of the People publicly accused Keita’s administration of corruption and declared its intention to “take our responsibilities before the people and before history” by toppling him.

Col. Mamady Doumbouya adopted a similar strategy when he justified the ouster of Guinean President Alpha Condé in September 2021 by claiming that “the duty of a soldier is to save the country.” Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, the president of Burkina Faso, was the next to go down.

Four months after the coup in Guinea, Lt. Col. Paul-Henri Damiba asserted that the severity of the country’s ongoing Islamist insurgency “imposed” the establishment of his Patriotic Movement for Protection and Restoration. He promised to resign as soon as the security situation was under control.

Instability has been made worse by divisions inside the Malian and Burkinabe interim governments, which even led to two further coup attempts. There are concerns about whether the transition initiatives will move through as planned despite the military authorities in Mali and Guinea’s assurances that they will make way for civilian governments.

The Economic Commission of West African States (ECOWAS) issued a stern warning to the junta following the military takeover in the landlocked nation of the Niger Republic to reverse the decision and reinstate democratic government.

The ECOWAS Heads of State and Government have agreed to immediately penalise Niger, including the closing of land and air borders between ECOWAS nations and Niger, following a meeting on Sunday in Abuja.

A no-fly zone will be established over all commercial flights to and from Niger, and all business and financial dealings between ECOWAS Member States and Niger would be suspended.

Additionally, the Republic of Niger’s assets held by the ECOWAS Central Bank, its state-owned companies, and its parastatals in private banks would be blocked.

The Niger Republic will also be barred from receiving any financial aid or engaging in any financial transactions with ECOWAS financial institutions.

The military officers implicated in the coup attempt as well as their families and civilians who agree to participate in any institutions or governments established by these military officials have also been subject to travel bans and asset restrictions.

But throughout the course of the week, the current ECOWAS Chairman, President Bola Tinubu, added a fresh wrinkle to the multiple sanctions put in place on the junta in the Niger republic.

The military junta and the leaders of ECOWAS are currently embroiled in a dispute over national and regional pride. A delegation of elders was sent to communicate with the military leaders and find a diplomatic solution.

President Tinubu met privately with Presidents Umaro Embalo of Guinea Bissau, Mahmat Itno of Chad, and Michael Health, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of African Affairs, before to the start of the Sunday Summit.

Presidents of Cape Verde, Liberia, Niger, and Sierra Leone were also represented, along with Presidents Patrice Talon of the Benin Republic, Alassane Ouattara of the Cote d’Ivoire, Adama Barrow of the Gambia, Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, Embalo of Guinea-Bissau, Macky Sall of Senegal, and Faure Gnassingbé of Togo.

As the diplomatic shuffle proceeds, the coup’s effects on the common people in the West African region continue to have an adverse effect on their socioeconomic struggles, sense of security, and public health.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan denounced the desperate attempts of some African leaders to hold onto power, a situation that has caused avoidable problems for the people of the continent, at a one-day peace conference with the theme “Peaceful Elections and National Development” that was organised by the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation (GJF) in 2019.

There is a vicious cycle in Africa where the pursuit of political power results in conflicts that exacerbate bad governance and bring about hardship, which in turn feeds the pursuit of leadership change, which in turn fuels further conflicts and bad leadership.

He added that many patriotic Africans will not dispute the fact that the root of the majority of the conflicts ravaging the continent is the desperation that frequently characterises the struggle for power. He also noted that Africa’s relatively slow growth and poor performing economies are linked to the preponderance of conflicts.

He emphasised that the 10 most developed countries on earth have the fewest conflicts, whereas the 10 least developed nations, many of which are in Africa, have the most severe conflicts.

“Any leader who is committed to the advancement of his country will go above and beyond to keep it free from unrest and conflicts, the reality is.”

Jonathan claims that the foundation’s mission is centred on fostering fair elections, peaceful transitions, good administration, as well as the empowerment of women and young people.

The former president’s remarks from the 2019 workshop still have resonance with current events in the West African area as the trend of military coups continues to reverberate ominously and have a detrimental effect on the region and its people.

A West Africa Elders Forum, made up of previous regional leaders, was established by the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation more than seven years ago as part of the effort to enshrine democracy and good governance in Africa, particularly West Africa.

The Forum interacts with the government on matters including transparent election administration, participation of all candidates, and acceptance of election results that are deemed free and fair by electoral observers and umpires.

The West African Elders Forum was established by GJF as part of efforts to advance democratic consolidation on the continent, particularly in West Africa. It is made up of former leaders and statesmen who will serve as mediators and interlocutors in resolving electoral and democratic conflict in the area.

March 4, 2021 marked the inauguration of this Forum.

It is noteworthy that retired general Abdulsalami Abubakar, a member of the West African Elders Forum, is one of the distinguished individuals President Bola Tinubu has selected to meet with the military junta in an effort to find a diplomatic solution to the issue.

The use of the Forum and any such organisations members will provide a better alternative to resolving our conflict locally before bringing in international mediators in order to demonstrate the resilience of Africans towards handling their affairs internally. Conflicts are on the rise both in West Africa and throughout Africa.

Furthermore, it will boost African credibility in terms of establishing democratic accountability, enhancing governance, and developing leadership to ensure a peaceful and transparent transfer of power.(NAN)