President of the ECOWAS CommissionJean-Claude Kassi Brou has scheduled an Extraordinary Summit of the sub-regional organisation for 9 September to discuss the current political situation in Guinea.
The summit on Guinea which details are still sketchy will hold in place of the meeting of the Extraordinary Council on Institutional Reform which was to hold on that same day
Guinea was over the weekend rocked by reports of an attempted coup by the military and which has made unclear, the fate of Guinea’s President Alpha Condé after an unverified video showed him surrounded by soldiers, who said they had seized power.
The TV address featured nine unnamed soldiers, several draped in the red, gold and green national flag, who said they had taken over because of rampant corruption, mismanagement and poverty.
The soldiers who called themselves the National Committee for Reconciliation and Development and which numerous reports said was led by an elite unit headed by a former French legionnaire, Lt Col Mamady Doumbouya, said the constitution had been dissolved and that there would be consultations to create a new, more inclusive one.
The soldiers who appeared on national TV claimed to have dissolved the government after heavy gunfire was reported near the presidential palace in the capital, Conakry.
However, a counter-claim from the defence ministry said the attempted takeover had been thwarted by the presidential guard.
The action of the soldiers had drawn condemnation from the UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres and the African Union who demanded the immediate release of President Condé.
Also, the Nigerian government has condemned the military coup against Conde who won a third term last October after changing the constitution to allow him to stand again, despite violent protests from the opposition.
Reacting to the development, the Nigerian Government in a statement by the ministry of foreign affairs said it was saddened by the coup.
It called on those behind the unconstitutional change of government to restore constitutional order without delay and protect lives and property.
“The Nigerian government is saddened by the apparent coup d’etat in the Republic of Guinea, in clear violation of the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance,” the statement reads
The West African country of Guinea is rich in natural resources but years of unrest and mismanagement mean it is one of the world’s poorest countries.
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