Nigerian senators of Northern extraction have urged West African leaders to lift the sanctions imposed on the Niger Republic following the military coup in that country.
The Heads of State of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in July imposed sanctions on the Niger Republic after coupists ousted President Mohamed Bazoum.
The ECOWAS sanctions included the suspension of all commercial transactions with Niger. Nigeria also cut power supply to the Niger Republic, while Ivory Coast suspended imports and exports.
The senators, after a meeting yesterday at the National Assembly, urged the West African leaders to lift the sanctions.
They also urged the Niger junta to release the ousted President Bazoum and draw a transition timeline that was not more than two years.
The lawmakers, in a communiqué read by Senator Abdul Ningi (PDP, Bauchi), said, “The Northern senators’ caucus, in strong terms, condemn the military intervention in democratic spaces in some West African sub-regions.
“The forum condemns in totality the coup d’état in Niger. We ask the military junta in Niger to heed the demands of other countries by freeing President Mohamed Bazoum and his immediate family to fully choose a country of his choice.
“The Northern Senators Forum further asks the junta in Niger to bring about a transition timetable that will last not more than two years.
“The Northern Senators’ Forum asks ECOWAS to lift restrictions on the Niger Republic in the interest of business at our border communities.
“It is important that Nigeriens should not suffer as a result of the coup in their country just as we are seeing what is happening in Gaza.
“We ask the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and of course, the ECOWAS Chairman, Bola Ahmed Tinubu to, as a matter of humanitarian gesture, restore electricity in Niger Republic.”
