The Northern Elders Forum, NEF, has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to remove economic sanctions imposed on the Niger Republic, to pave the way for negotiations.
The NEF convener, Ango Abdullahi, who made the appeal in a statement on Tuesday, said the use of force was unlikely to achieve the goal of restoring constitutional order in the former Republic.
Mr Abdullahi said: “Northern Elders Forum (NEF) had chosen to observe events and reactions in the Niger Republic since the coup d’etat in that country a few weeks ago. Our decision to watch and refrain from open comments was informed by a number of reasons.
“First, we joined millions of Nigerians and Africans in rejecting in totality any attempt to overthrow the constitutional order by the Nigerien military.
“Nigerians had been encouraged by a number of visits from Nigeria to Niger Republic, which suggested that the diplomatic option is open, and that Nigeria has the potential to influence developments in Niger.
“Nigeria should remove all sanctions and other measures intended to force the government and people of Niger into acquiescence. This will make negotiations led by Nigeria, using all assets that both countries value, easier to conduct.
“The use of force against Niger should be ruled out. It is unlikely to achieve the goals of restoring the constitutional order and improving the frontiers of democratic systems in West Africa. It will compound the security and humanitarian crises in the ECOWAS region.”
The convener, therefore, appealed to Mr Tinubu, residents of Nigeria and Niger Republic to resist any attempt to poison centuries of good relationship.
“NEF commends all leaders and persons of influence, including the Nigerian senate, who are contributing to a genuine resolution of the situation in Niger Republic,” he added.
“We urge President Tinubu to recognise this unique moment in history and conduct himself in a manner that records his role as defining statesmanship.
“We appeal to the people of Nigeria and Niger, as well as our leaders, to resist any attempt to poison our centuries of relationship.”
