Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has given the military junta in Mali a maximum of 12 months to remain in power to complete its transition process and hand over to a democratically elected government.
Buhari issued the deadline when he joined other ECOWAS Heads of State and Governments in a virtual meeting from Abuja on Friday.
The Nigerian leader charged the military junta in Mali to set an acceptable time table for return to democratic government, since the country cannot afford to stand alone in the sub-region.
In his remarks at the 3rd Extraordinary Summit of ECOWAS on the socio-political crisis in Mali, President Buhari said from the briefings presented by the Special Envoy, former President Goodluck Jonathan, it was clear that the regional body’s engagements with the new military leadership in Mali were yet to achieve the desired results in several key areas.
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity Femi Adesina, President Buhari added that the military leadership should be flexible in negotiations by putting the interest of all Malians and the harmony of the sub-region into consideration.
He called on the military leadership to consider the immediate release of all the remaining senior government officials in detention without pre-conditions; and pursue a transition process to be completed in not more than 12 months, and which shall include the representatives of Malian stakeholders.
President Buhari also emphasized the need for Mali Constitutional Court to work hand in hand with all the Malian stakeholders to ensure an early and hitch-free return to a democratic government through a free, fair and inclusive election.
According to the President, “In this connection Nigeria will, alongside ECOWAS, provide necessary logistics support to facilitate the conduct of elections to re-establish democratic governance in Mali.
President Buhari commended the Chair of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, President Mahamadou Issoufou of Niger Republic for convening the Extraordinary Summit.
The President also condoled with Alassane Ouattara, President of Cote D’ivoire, on the loss of a close aide, Mamadi Diane.
Among Declarations of the Summit adopted by ECOWAS leaders were that the transition government in Mali must be led by civilians and that the return to constitutional order should be concluded within 12 months.
Malian military was also encouraged to focus on securing the country, faced with severe security threats from its northern part, instead of an incursion into governance.
Editor: Omor Bazuaye
