President Bola Ahmed Tinubu returned to Abuja Monday evening after a two-day official visit to Bissau, the capital of Guinea-Bissau, where he attended the 63rd Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
The president arrived at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, around 6:30 p.m. aboard the NAF 001 Boeing 737 jet.
While in Bissau, Tinubu was unanimously named the new Chairman of ECOWAS, making him one of the fastest into that office after election as President of any of the member states.
After accepting the role of Chairman of the Authority, Tinubu promised to bear the responsibility of the office and run an inclusive administration of the regional organisation.
He warned that terrorism and the persistent pattern of coup d’etat in the region had reached an alarming level, demanding urgent and concerted action.
He said insecurity and creeping terrorism, which were stunting the progress and development of the sub-region, required collective action from member states.
While decrying the emerging pattern of coup d’etat in West Africa, Tinubu charged ECOWAS to stand firm in defence of democracy.
“There is no one among us who did not campaign to be a leader. We didn’t give our soldiers resources; we didn’t invest in them, in their boots, in their training to violate the freedom of the people,” he said.
According to him, the military turning its guns against civil authorities violates the principles upon which they were hired, which are to defend the sovereignty of their nations.
“We must not sit in ECOWAS as toothless bulldogs,” he added.
He urged his counterparts to strengthen their respective democratic institutions and ensure respect for human rights and the rule of law, saying his one-year tenure “will enhance engagements with the countries in transition (Mali, Guinea, and Burkina Faso) to ensure their quick return to democratic rule.”
Vanguard
