Niger Coup: Holding Bazoum In Captivity Is A Terrorist Act – Cote D’Ivoire President

President Alhassan Quattara of Cote D’Ivoire has said the prolonged detention of the ousted President of Niger Republic, Mohammed Bazoum is an act of terrorism.

Quattara stated this while speaking with journalists after the Extraordinary Summit of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Heads of State and Government in Abuja on Thursday.

The Cote D’Ivoire president said ECOWAS had taken many decisions in the past about coup d’etat, and the community has always condemned the forceful military takeover of power in West Africa.

Quattara said the effort to restore Bazoum to power is not a Nigerian thing but an ECOWAS decision, and the regional bloc will not allow the hostage of the Niger President to continue.

He said, “We had a very good summit. We thank President Tinubu for having invited us, for his hospitality and for the people of Nigeria.

“As you’re aware, this is the second summit in 10 days that we have organized on Niger, and this is a critical problem we have to solve. As you’re aware, ECOWAS has taken many decisions in the past, legal and factual, about coup d’etat and the community has always condemned coup d’etat, and coup d’etat has happened in many countries in the sub-region.

“ECOWAS has intervened in the past in Liberia, Sierra Leone, recently in Gambia, Guinea Bissau, and today we have a similar situation in Niger.

“I’d like to say that ECOWAS cannot accept this. This is not a matter of Nigeria against Niger, not at all. The decision that we have made today, and I hope it will be implemented immediately, is a decision of ECOWAS, all heads of state, I think that we have tried dialogue with the putschists.

“We have sent a delegation, strong personalities like former president Abdulsalami Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto, Emir of Kano, former governor of CBN Sanusi, my friend and many others personalities in this important country, to talk to the people of Niger.

“But they’re keeping President Bazoum hostage. I personally consider this as a terrorist act. And we cannot let this continue. We have to act.

“The position of Côte d’Ivoire, which all of the Heads of State have endorsed, is that we have been able to tell these putschists that their place is in the barracks. They should go to fight the terrorists and not try to kidnap a democratically elected president.

“So we believe that this is for the credibility of ECOWAS. All of us are concerned and involved in this decision. So I’d like to thank my former president of ECOWAS President Tom Barlow he himself is a former general democratically elected now to serve that we want democracy in our sub-region.

“We do not accept, we will not accept coup d’etat, and I think these putschists must go if they don’t let Bazoum out to be able to exercise his mandate. I think we should move ahead and get them out. Bazoum is the democratically elected president. he should be freed. He should be able to exercise its mandate freely.”

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