ECOWAS Makes New Demands From Niger Coup Leaders On Transition Period

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has demanded a shorter transition from coup leaders in Niger Republic.

Naija News had earlier reported that the Junta in Niger promised to transfer power in the next three years.

The Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, President Bola Tinubu, however, said the three-year transition proposed by the military leaders is unacceptable.

A member of the Islamic clerics who met with President Tinubu, the National Missioner, Ansar-udeen Society of Nigeria, Sheikh Abdulrahman Ahmad in an interview with Punch said the President wants the transition period reduced.

Ahmad, who is the spokesperson for the Ulamas during the interview revealed that President Tinubu insisted that the military leaders must give specifics of their transition programme which must also be brief.

He said, “What we did Thursday was to brief him (ECOWAS chairman) on the outcome of our visit. The reason he has asked us to go back is that he wants specifics from the junta. That was what he said; their response was too open-ended and he could not hold that. That is why he asked us to go back.

“The President wants specifics that what he (head of the junta) had said is too general; they want to be able to hold them to a timeline and the commitment and the specifics of the short time of transition.”

On when the delegation would return to Niamey, the cleric said, “We are deliberating on when it will be convenient for members to go back and when it will be convenient for the people we are going to meet to receive us.

“We are still deliberating on when to go back, so we haven’t fixed a date yet. The point is that we have stated it time and time again, over and over, that we are not a government delegation as such.

“The vision to intervene was a private initiative of the Ulamas and it is not a committee set up by the government. We are only trying to facilitate a peaceful resolution with regard to the conflict without the need for the use of force.

“So, to that extent, we sought the permission of the President because it is not something we can do on our own, basically with another country. The President granted the permission, and then we began and of course, our President is the chairman of ECOWAS and we briefed him each time we visited the Nigerien people. But basically, it’s is about the convenience of members of the delegation, and then we will reconvene and then we go.”