Dr Gabriel UguruHERE is a thought. A coup d’etat in Guinea on Sunday, 5th September 2021, overthrew the president, Mr Alpha Condo, who changed the constitution to allow himself to run for a third term, rigged the election, got himself “elected”, and then proceeded to jail the oppositions. Sounds familiar? That’s traditional African democracy.
Now the poser is that ECOWAS is threatening the new regime in Guinea with sanctions, because it frowns upon coups. The members are going to hold a virtual meeting later today to decide on their actions towards Guinea and in that meeting, there will be Nigeria represented by her president, Muhammadu Buhari. How do you think Buhari will vote – to sanction or endorse the coup? Remember he carried out a coup on 31 December 1983 in which the democratically elected government of Shehu Shagari was overthrown.
Cameroon president, Paul Biya, who has been in power since November 1982, will be present in that same meeting. How will he vote?
President Idriss Deby of Chad has been in power since 2011; how will he vote?
President Denis Sassou Nguesso of the Republic of the Congo has been in power since 1997; how will he vote?
President Macky Sall of Senegal has been in power since 2012; how will he vote?
President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea has been in power since 1979; how will he vote?
President Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon has been in power since 2009; how will he vote?
President Alassane Ouattara of the Ivory Coast has been in power since 2010; how will he vote?
President – Faure Gnassingbé of Togo has been in power since 2005; how will he vote?
The African Union (AU), also frowns upon coups. The members do not want anyone gatecrashing in on their elite club. Let’s have a look at the rest of the big cats who will later be joining the other ECOWAS big cats in making a decision on Guinea:
President Jorge Carlos Fonseca of Cape Verde has been in power since 2011; how will he vote?
President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh of Djibouti has been in power since 1999; how will he vote?
President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt carried out a coup on 3 July 2013 in which the democratically elected government of Mohamed Morsi was overthrown, and el-Sisi has been in power since 2014 after resigning from the army and running for president; how will he vote?
President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya has been in power since 2013; how will he vote?
President Paul Kagame of Rwanda has been in power since 2000; how will he vote?
President Salva Kiir Mayardit of South Sudan has been in power since 2005; how will he vote?
President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda has been in power since 1986; how will he vote?
Set a thief to catch a thief, indeed!
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