Former President Goodluck Jonathan has been safely evacuated to Abuja after becoming trapped in Guinea-Bissau during a sudden military coup in the country.
Jonathan, who was in Guinea-Bissau leading the West African Elders Forum Election Observation Mission, had arrived to monitor last Sunday’s presidential and legislative elections. His team was still on the ground when the military abruptly announced it had seized control of government.
He touched down at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Thursday after being airlifted out of the country.
In a joint statement issued on Wednesday, Filipe Nyusi, former president of Mozambique and head of the African Union Election Observation Mission; Issifu Kamara, head of the ECOWAS Election Observation Mission; and Jonathan condemned the coup, calling it a calculated attempt to derail Guinea-Bissau’s democratic process.
The three leaders appealed for calm and reaffirmed their commitment to supporting the nation through what they described as a “sensitive period,” stressing the need to protect peace, stability, and the welfare of the Bissau-Guinean people.
Nigeria’s Federal Government also denounced the coup, warning that the development poses a grave threat to democracy and regional stability.
