General Christopher Musa emphasizes the urgent need to eliminate the threat of military coups in West Africa.
During a crucial meeting in Abuja, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, expressed deep concerns about the increasing instances of military takeovers in West Africa. He highlighted that these actions have led to severe unintended consequences, undermining the democratic principles of the region.
Speaking at the 42nd Ordinary Meeting of the ECOWAS Committee of Chiefs of Defence Staff, General Musa stressed the importance of eradicating the threat of military coups. He asserted that such actions contradict the essential values and duties of the military. He further emphasized that in democratic nations, the military must uphold the principles outlined in their constitutions.
Also present were the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Abubakar, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar. They called on the regional defence chiefs to strengthen their collaboration in combating terrorism and curbing the illicit movement of small arms and light weapons within the West African sub-region. This meeting, held at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja, focused on regional security issues and discussed the possibility of establishing a dedicated force to address these challenges.
Of the 15 expected defence chiefs, representatives from Cape Verde, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, and Togo were notably absent. Despite these absences, the meeting aimed to build on the resolutions from the previous year’s meeting, which focused on addressing the political, security, and diplomatic issues in Niger Republic.
Recent developments saw the military regimes of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger form a mutual defence pact, distancing themselves from the wider Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) bloc. In January, these countries officially left ECOWAS. This July, their leaders participated in the first summit of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), an organization created post-ECOWAS exit. The decision to leave ECOWAS was partly driven by accusations that France was manipulating the bloc and not providing adequate support for anti-jihadist efforts.
