- Jonathan Stranded In Guinea Bissau⁹ As Military Seizes Power
- Borders and airports remain closed as junta halts movement nationwide.
- AU and ECOWAS call for swift restoration of constitutional order
Former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan is among several African leaders and election observers stranded in Guinea Bissau following a military takeover on Wednesday.
Jonathan was part of a thirty six member observer delegation jointly deployed by the African Union, ECOWAS and the West African Elders Forum to monitor the country’s presidential election conducted on Sunday.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the crisis erupted after both President Umaro Embalo, who is seeking re election, and his main challenger, Fernando Dias, separately declared themselves winners despite the absence of official results from the electoral commission. Their conflicting claims heightened tension and created a power vacuum that the military capitalised on to announce a takeover.
Following the coup, soldiers shut the country’s land and air borders, grounded flights and halted civil movement, leaving the observer mission and several senior officials unable to leave. Airports were closed, airspace operations suspended and major entry and exit points taken over by the junta.
Hours after the military announcement, the joint AU ECOWAS WAEF observer mission expressed concern over the development, describing it as a major disruption to the electoral process. According to the delegation, the military statement was issued shortly after observers concluded separate meetings with the two leading candidates, who had assured them of readiness to accept a credible outcome.
The mission urged the African Union and ECOWAS to take urgent steps toward restoring constitutional order, insisting that military interference in a democratic process cannot be tolerated. It also demanded the immediate release of public officials detained during the takeover.
The observer team had been scheduled to leave Guinea Bissau on November twenty nine, according to its official itinerary, but the closure of borders has stalled the plan.
