Coup in Guinea-Bissau: Election monitoring African leaders stranded
Former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan Jonathan is among African leaders currently trapped in Guinea-Bissau following yesterday’s coup d’état in that country.
He is one of the 36 high-profile observers on the joint mission of the African Union (AU), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and the West African Elders Forum (WAEF), who were in Guinea-Bissau to monitor the presidential election held Sunday.
However, on Wednesday, 26th November, military officers seized control of the government and suspended the country’s electoral process, and announced closure of the tiny country’s borders.
The military struck after President Umaro Embaló, who was seeking a re-election, and Fernando Dias, his main opponent, each declared themselves winner of the polls even when the electoral umpire was yet to announce the results.
Following the coup, the joint mission expressed “deep concern” about the development.
“It’s regrettable that this announcement came at a time when the missions had just concluded meeting with the two leading presidential candidates, who assured us of their willingness to accept the will of the people,” they said in a statement.
They called on the AU and ECOWAS to take urgent steps to reverse the situation, and demanded the immediate release of all detained government officials.