ECOWAS to send a mission of Heads of State to Bissau
Niamey, Niger (PANA) - The extraordinary summit of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on the Guinea-Bissau crisis has decided to send a mission of heads of state to Bissau to transmit the conclusions of the Niamey Conference to President José Mário Vaz.
According to the final communiqué issued at the end of the summit, the mission to be led by the Chair of the Conference, will comprise the Presidents of Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea and Nigeria. It will be preceded by a mission of the Chiefs of Defence of ECOWAS Member States.
The summit recalled the successful conduct of the parliamentary elections of 10 March 2019, as well as the appointment of Prime Minister Aristide Gomez and also recalled that the President's mandate had ended on 23 June 2019. It noted the progress made in the preparations for the presidential election.
The summit noted that as the country was engaged, with the support of the international community, in the preparations for elections of 24 November 2019, President José Mario Vaz suddenly decided by decree on 28 October to dismiss the Prime Minister and dissolve the government, and then appointed a new Prime Minister.
According to the communique, the conference confirmed 24 November 2019 for the first round of the presidential election in Guinea Bissau and instructed the Chairperson of the Commission to take all necessary measures to accompany the electoral process, including the deployment of electoral observers, in order to ensure the credibility and transparency of the process.
The summit demands the resignation of the Prime Minister appointed on 28 October and his entire government under penalty of individual punishment. It recalled that President Vaz has been, since 23 June, an interim President whose acts must be countersigned by the Prime Minister in order to give them legality.
Closing the meeting, Nigerien President Issoufou Mahamadou said that by addressing the difficult situation in Guinea Bissau, "we are doing a service not only to this country, but to the entire region in accordance with the spirit of solidarity and mutual assistance that underlies the existence of our community."
-0- PANA SA/IS/MTA/AR 9Nov2019
