[ad_1]
• Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa overthrew Alpha Conde on ECOWAS and the AU
• He said that these bodies as well as the international community have failed on the continent
• His comment was after the overthrow of Alpha Condé
Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, said the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN) should be blamed for the overthrow of Professor Alpha Condé by the Guinean special forces.
He also bluntly blamed other international communities, saying they did not speak up when around 13 presidents of some African countries attempted to change their constitutions in others to keep them in office longer. .
Ablakwa told Joy News’ PM Express on Monday, September 7, 2021 that ECOWAS and the AU were silent when 83-year-old Alpha Condé attempted to become president through the constitution amendment.
“Back to the failure of the African Union, ECOWAS and to a certain extent the United Nations. Since the wave of democratization of the 1990s, it was clear that the African people had had enough of the coups d’état of the first coup that occurred in Ghana on February 24, 1966, until the 1980s. 90s ushered in a new era. According to the African Center for Strategic Studies, some 50 constitutions were drafted in the 1990s. Thirty of them had limited mandates.
“It will surprise you to find that only as of 2015, in the last six years alone, as many as 13 countries have amended their constitutions to extend the term. What is sad about Guinea is that he (Alpha Condé) was even preparing to run for a fourth term. He wanted to be president at 83 for Christ’s sake. What he did was say that this is a new constitution. So no matter what happened, my two terms won’t count. So this will be my first term, I am starting over and he would have left. I mean, to ransom the Guinean people.
“What does the AU say about it, nothing. What does ECOWAS say about this? Most of them are from West African countries, ”said the MP for North Tongu.
The ranking member of the Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee noted that what is happening in Guinea is very sad and that he does not approve of coups d’état in any way.
“We do not approve of coups. We don’t want to. Coups are bringing us back and they do not and should not have their place in any democratic construction. His story (of Alpha Condé) is so sad because he would have emerged as one of the success stories of Africa because he is one of those few great old people who have spent their whole life in the trenches. For more than 30 years, he has fought for a democratic order. He paid the price himself. He was sentenced to five years in prison. He was only lucky to be pardoned, ”he said.
Okudzeto Ablakwa observed, despite Alpha Condé’s accomplishments, that he should have expected his overthrow due to his recent actions which did not please many citizens in Guinea.
“One would have thought that with this rich history, where he can become a source of inspiration for many African opposition politicians and democratic activists, he would have been a shining example.
“You (Alpha Condé) managed to get a second term, that’s enough. But instead of bowing out after your second term, you then change the constitution, go for a referendum and it was a questionable referendum.
“It is coming. You should have taken steps to avoid this. You have a situation where President Condé has decided that he will completely abandon the constitution that brought him to power, ”he stressed.
Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa’s comments come after Professor Alpha Conde was ousted by Guinean special forces, months after Conde won a controversial third term, but only after pushing through a new constitution in March 2020 allowing him to cancel the country’s two-term limit.
His actions had been condemned by the opposition and labeled an abuse of power.
The inauguration of Condé was honored by eminent personalities from around the world, including presidents of the African continent.
Other recent military takeovers preceding that of Guinea took place in Mali and Chad.
Meanwhile, ECOWAS condemned the coup in Guinea and demanded the release of Alpha Condé who was arrested by the military.
ECOWAS further demands a return to constitutional rule, stating that failure to do so will result in sanctions.
Source link
