The federal government has confirmed that former President Goodluck Jonathan is safe and has left Guinea-Bissau following the military takeover in the country.
Guinea-Bissau’s presidential and legislative elections on November 23 were disrupted when a group of military officers announced that they had seized power, declaring the removal of the president and the suspension of the electoral process.
The Nigerian government condemned the forceful takeover, joining the African Union and the ECOWAS electoral missions in denouncing the coup d’état.
Jonathan, who was in the country as part of the ECOWAS Monitoring Mission at the time of the announcement, became a subject of concern over his safety.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through its spokesperson, assured the media that the former President is safe and has already departed Guinea-Bissau.
According to him, “Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is very safe and out of Guinea-Bissau.”
Meanwhile, AU and ECOWAS have expressed great concern over the announcement of a coup d’etat by the armed forces of Guinea-Bissau.
The heads of the missions made this known in a joint statement on Thursday.
The statement was signed by Filipe Nyusi, former President of Mozambique, Issifu Kamara, and former President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan, respectively.
They noted the orderly and peaceful conclusion of the voting process for the presidential and legislative elections and decried the disruption of the process by the military.
“We commend the people of Guinea-Bissau for their strong civic engagement and professionalism demonstrated by polling staff, security personnel, presidential candidates, and party agents throughout the voting process.
“Despite these encouraging developments, we express deep concern with the announcement of a coup d’etat by the armed forces, while the nation was waiting for the announcement of the results.
“It is regrettable that this announcement came at a time when the missions had just concluded a meeting with the two leading presidential candidates, who assured us of their willingness to accept the will of the people.
“We deplore this blatant attempt to disrupt the democratic process and the gains that have been achieved thus far,’’ they said.
They asked the African Union and the ECOWAS to take the necessary steps to restore constitutional order in the country.
They further expressed concerns over the arrests of top officials, including those who were in charge of the electoral process, urging the armed forces to immediately release the detained officials.
This, according to them, was to allow the country’s electoral process to proceed to its conclusion.
“We call on the people of Guinea-Bissau to remain calm, and we reaffirm our commitment to supporting the country on its democratic path.
“We underscore the importance of preserving peace, stability, and the well-being of the people during this sensitive period,” they added. (THE NATION)
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