Military Action May Escalate Niger Crisis -AANI Warns ECOWAS

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has been advised against immediate military action in responding to the Niger crisis

It is however to address the root cause of political crisis in the country, strengthening her democratic institutions as vital to achieving lasting peace and stability in the region.

These advices have been given by the Alumni Association of the National Institute (AANI), which issued a statement in Abuja today.

Its reaction followed the expiration of the ECOWAS deadline to the military rulers in Niger Republic.

In the statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, retired Brig Gen. Sani Usman, the association however strongly condemned the military seizure of power in Niger, expressing support of ECOWAS’ efforts towards restoring democracy in the country.

 The statement added: “AANI, therefore, urges caution against immediate military action.

“Instead non-military options like diplomatic pressure and economic sanctions should be adopted towards a peaceful resolution and a quicker return to democratic governance in Niger Republic, ” he said.

On the other hand, military action, might escalate tensions in the Lake Chad region and other parts of West Africa, creating opportunity for other external actors to come in.

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“This would exacerbate the security challenges and create a more complex and dangerous situation.

“It is, therefore, essential to prioritise peaceful and diplomatic solutions to the political crisis,” he said.

The Eagle reports the ECOWAS stating earlier that the military option was its last option to getting the military in Niger restore democracy.

In Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security Abdel-Fatau Musah told reporters on Wednesday that the “military option is the very last option on the table to contain the Niger Crisis, but that sub-regional body had to be ready for the consequences.

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“There is a need to demonstrate that we can not only bark but can bite”, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security Abdel-Fatau Musah told reporters.

Niger supplies Niger 70 per cent of its power and aside the military action, one of the actions taken by Nigeria to force the organisers of the coup was to cut power supply to Niger on Wednesday.