The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Alieu Touray, said this at the Extra-ordinary Session of the Mediation and Security Council (MSC) at Ministerial Level held at the ECOWAS Commission headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Thursday said that the decision of the three member states: Mali, Burkina Faso and the Republic of Niger to withdraw their membership of the West African bloc has no real reasons nor does it show reflection of its implications on their citizens.
The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Alieu Touray, said this at the Extra-ordinary Session of the Mediation and Security Council (MSC) at Ministerial Level held at the ECOWAS Commission headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
The Extra-ordinary Session of the Mediation and Security Council (MSC) at Ministerial Level was held to discuss the recent decisions of the three member states to withdraw from ECOWAS.
Touray said that the unfolding events in the region are posing threats to peace and political stability in the West African community.
He noted that “If there is a time for ECOWAS to stay together, this is the time,” stressing that “there is no challenge that ECOWAS cannot overcome.”
Touray said that there was no real basis in the reasons given by the countries for their withdrawal of their membership of ECOWAS and added that they did not reflect on the implications of this decision to their citizens.
According to him, “The hasty decision of withdrawal of membership of ECOWAS did not take into account the conditions for withdrawal of membership from ECOWAS, as espoused in the 1993 ECOWAS Revised Treaty.
“But more importantly, the three member States have not really reflected on the implications of this decision on the citizens.”
Also speaking during the session, the Chairman of the MSC and Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, said that the decisions of the three countries which are under military rule have generated considerable concern across the region and beyond.
Tuggar described the meeting as crucial “To devise solutions to the challenges presented by these decisions” but stressed that “In our pursuit of solutions, we must remain committed to the principles of democratic governance and safeguarding the right of our people to freely elect their leaders.”
Tuggar further said that “It goes without saying that we are stronger together as a Community. We project not just our common values and a more attractive market.
“We also can deal more effectively with those shared challenges that go beyond national borders: climate change, violent extremism, migration and organized crime, to name but a few.”
Recall that Mali, Burkina Faso and the Republic of Niger announced their withdrawal from ECOWAS “with immediate effect” through a joint communiqué signed by representatives of the three countries on January 28.
The ECOWAS said that the communiqué was subsequently followed by separate official notifications on January 29.
The Extraordinary meeting of the Mediation and Security Council at Ministerial Level was made up of Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defence from ECOWAS member states.