Femi Falana, SAN, on Tuesday, appealed to the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), urging them to impose more strict sanctions on Niger and devise measures to enforce their implementation, especially in light of the coup plotters’ stubborn position.
Femi Falana, SAN, made this plea just two days after ECOWAS declared Niger’s airspace off-limits for flights.
Furthermore, ECOWAS issued a one-week deadline for the military junta in Niger to step down, accompanied by a warning that they might resort to the ‘use of force’ if the demand is not met.
In response to the unfolding situation, the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has called for the ‘immediate release and reinstatement’ of Niger’s elected president, Mohamed Bazoum, who has been in military custody since Wednesday.
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In response to the actions taken by the West African bloc, Falana and Falana Chambers stated that merely suspending Niger from ECOWAS was insufficient, arguing for more stringent measures to be taken, as per their statement by Tayo Soyemi.
‘The leaders of the sub-regional body should refrain from attending international conferences with coup plotters as was recently witnessed during the recently concluded Russia-Africa Summit held in St. Petersburg, Russia,’ the human rights lawyer noted.
In a presentation titled ‘Unconstitutional Change of Governments: the Role of Bar Associations,’ Falana was reported to have made the calls during a two-day conference of the West African Bar Association (WABA) held in Accra, Ghana, on Tuesday.
Falana was said to have made the calls in a paper titled “Unconstitutional Change of Governments: the Role of Bar Associations”, delivered on Tuesday at a two-day conference of the West African Bar Association (WABA) in Accra, Ghana.
The paper partly reads: ‘Last week, Gen Abdourahmane Tchiani, the head of the presidential guards’ unit, overthrew the Mohamed Bazoum administration and declared himself the ruler of Niger’s new ruler.’