Ghanaian Journalist and Editor of the Insight Newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr., has expressed his frustrations about Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu’s attempt to interfere in the Niger Coup as the Chairperson of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
He lashed out at the Nigerian President, expressing his disappointment in his inability to salvage the crisis in his own country. Yet, he is also looking beyond the walls and threatening to intervene in the Niger unrest.
Troubled by the developments in the West African Countries, Kwesi Pratt Jnr is asking, “What is wrong with these West African heads of state? They are not thinking right. They are exceedingly reckless,”
“What legitimacy do these heads of state have? To play the role they want to play in Niger?”
Speaking on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana on Wednesday, August 2, the ace journalist observed that, West Africa is in serious turmoil and if care is not taken, the subregion is likely to become the next Ukraine.
“West Africa is in serious turmoil. If care is not taken West Africa is likely to become the new Ukraine. I have no doubt at all about it. If you take the whole of the region, West African sub-region it’s a population of about 500 million [Correction: According to Worldometer, the current population of Western Africa is 440,792,015 as of Tuesday, August 1, 2023, based on the latest United Nations estimates] Nigeria alone accounts for 50% of the population. Any crisis in Nigeria is likely to have a ripple effect throughout the region,” Mr. Pratt said.
According to Kwesi Pratt, reports indicate that the North East of Nigeria is facing threats from the Boko Haram terrorist group, and the Niger Delta area is currently faced with a low-intensity civil war. To the east of Nigeria is also a thriving secessionist movement. This alone is a serious problem for West Africa.
He believes that “In many of these West African countries if there is a coup tomorrow, people will jubilate! They will mass up in their hundreds of thousands in support of the coup d’états.”
On Monday, July 31, Mali and Burkina Faso stated that any effort by an external force to directly interfere with Niger’s ongoing coup would be considered a “declaration of war” against their respective countries, raising the prospect of a full-fledged regional battle in the Sahel.
Their angry remark appears to be directed largely at the ECOWAS, which committed on Sunday to take “all necessary measures” to restore deposed Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum.
Currently, the bloc has taken decisive action by imposing sanctions on Niger, effectively suspending all transactions between the coup-affected nation and ECOWAS member states. Furthermore, they have frozen all Nigerien assets held in regional central banks.
By: Akua Karle Okyere | mEtrotvonline.com | Ghana
