Niger Coup: Nigerian Senate rejects Tinubu’s troop deployment plan, urges political solution

Tamarauemi Ebimini

The Nigerian Senate has reached a resolution rejecting President Bola Tinubu‘s request to deploy Nigerian troops in Niger Republic to restore democratic rule in that troubled country.

Rather the upper legislative chamber advised Mr Tinubu and the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), which he leads, to explore political solution to the crisis.

The resolution confirms an earlier report that Senators had taken a decision opposing military action in Niger.

President Tinubu had on Friday sought the approval of the upper chamber to mobilise the Nigerian Army to Niger Republic to combat the Nigerien coupists who overthrew their democratically elected president, Mohammed Bazoum.

In a resolution after deliberating on Mr Tinubu’s request at a closed session Saturday, the Senate supported other steps being taking by Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to reverse the coup but rejected the option of a military action in the poor West African nation.

The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, read the resolution after the lawmakers returned to plenary.

Me Akpabio suggested that the President did not seek the approval of the Senate to go to war in Niger Republic but that is incorrect because Mr Tinubu clearly indicated a plan to execute an ECOWAS mandate to deploy troops in Niger should the coupists remain recalcitrant.

But in his letter to the Senate Friday, President Tinubu had listed the measures ECOWAS and Nigeria planned to take to restore democracy to Niger.

They include “Military build up and deployment of personnel for military intervention to enforce compliance of the military junta in Niger should they (coupist) remain recalcitrant.”