UPDATE: ECOWAS chairman Julius Maada Bio holds 'constructive' discussions with Guinea-Bissau junta leaders
Bissau, Guinea-Bissau (PANA) - The Chairperson of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone, says he held “constructive discussions” with the military junta in Guinea-Bissau on Monday.
In a post on X, he wrote: "Pursuant to the communique of the Extraordinary Session of the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council, I engaged in a constructive discussion with the military leadership of Guinea-Bissau.
“As Chairperson of the Authority of Heads of State and Government, I reaffirmed ECOWAS's unwavering commitment to restore constitutional order.”
President Bio gave no details of the discussions. There has been no comment from the junta leaders.
President Bio arrived in Bissau on Monday as the regional bloc seeks to restore constitutional order after last week's coup.
The Guinea-Bissau military rulers banned protests and strikes ahead of the visit by the ECOWAS delegation.
ECOWAS held an extraordinary virtual meeting Chaired by President Bio shortly after the coup ousting President Umaro Sissoco Embaló was announced on 26 November.
They expressed deep concern about the political crisis and suspended Guinea-Bissau from all decision-making bodies until the restoration of full and effective constitutional order.
The coup happened as the Electoral Commission was tallying votes in the parliamentary and presidential elections.
The military announced the appointment of General Horta N'Tam, a former chief of staff of the army, as president of the Republic, for a period of one year. He has since appointed a new Prime Minister.
Ousted President Sissoco Embaló was released last Thursday and flew to Senegal, but he has since left to Congo-Brazzaville.
A communique by ECOWAS said its Mediation and Security Council (MSC), which held an extraordinary virtual meeting last Thursday at the level of Heads of State and Government, rejected any arrangements that perpetuate the illegal abortion of the democratic process and the subversion of the will of the people of Guinea-Bissau.
The MSC mandated the Chair of the Authority to lead a High-Level Mediation Mission to Guinea-Bissau to engage the leaders of the coup “with a view to ensuring the full restoration of constitutional order”.
It added that the Mission should include the President of the Council of Togo, Faure Gnassingbe, Presidents Jose Maria Pereira Neves of Cabo Verde and Bassirou Diomaye Faye of Senegal, accompanied by the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Omar Alieu Touray.
“The MSC urges the Armed forces of Guinea Bissau to return to the barracks and maintain their constitutional role,” the communique said.
In a separate development, Guinea Bissau's opposition coalition Front Populaire last Wednesday condemned what it describes as an “attempted staged coup d’État” aimed at preventing the publication of provisional electoral results expected on 27 November.
In a statement issued in Bissau, the coalition accused former President Umaro Sissoco Embaló of acting “in collusion” with the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces to “subvert the will of the electorate”. The Front Populaire alleges that militia groups linked to the Presidency were involved in the operation carried out earlier in the day.
Media reports quote the opposition as saying that the alleged plan seeks to block the release of election results “that would confirm the President’s defeat”.
The Front Populaire also questioned the President’s claim that he was detained by the armed forces, noting that he had granted interviews to international media on Wednesday.
The coalition additionally accused Embaló of ordering an attack by the National Guard on the headquarters of the National Electoral Commission ahead of the alleged operation.
The coup has also been condemned by the UN, AU, and various governments.
-0- PANA MA 1Dec2025
