Former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has described the recent Guinea‑Bissau takeover as a “ceremonial coup” staged by ousted President Umaro Sissoco Embaló, insisting that the military intervention was not a genuine coup d’état.
Jonathan, who had traveled to Guinea‑Bissau as part of an election monitoring mission, was trapped during the upheaval before being evacuated aboard an Ivorian aircraft.
He alleged that Embaló himself announced the coup before the military stepped in, a move he said was both surprising and embarrassing.
Jonathan’s Account
Speaking to journalists in Nigeria, Jonathan said Embaló made phone calls to foreign leaders and addressed journalists claiming he had been arrested, even while still using his phone freely.
“The military doesn’t overthrow a government and allow the sitting President to be using their phones and addressing press conferences. Who is fooling who?” Jonathan asked.
He emphasized that the elections were peaceful, with observers confirming proper conduct and vote collation across all nine regions.
According to him, the results were ready to be announced when Embaló suddenly declared a coup. Jonathan urged ECOWAS and the African Union to ensure the election results are released and the rightful winner acknowledged.
Jonathan also expressed gratitude to Nigerians for their concern during his ordeal and thanked President Bola Tinubu and Côte d’Ivoire’s President Alassane Ouattara for arranging evacuation efforts.
He explained that Ouattara’s aircraft secured landing clearance first due to regional ties, which is why he returned aboard an Ivorian plane.
ECOWAS Response
Meanwhile, ECOWAS has suspended Guinea‑Bissau from all decision‑making bodies of the regional bloc.
Meeting virtually under the chairmanship of Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio, the Mediation and Security Council (MSC) condemned the coup and demanded the restoration of constitutional order.
A communique stated: “The MSC decides, in accordance with the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, to suspend Guinea‑Bissau from all ECOWAS decision‑making bodies until the restoration of full and effective constitutional order.”
The MSC also held coup leaders responsible for the protection of citizens and detainees, ordered the ECOWAS Stabilization and Support Mission in Guinea‑Bissau to continue safeguarding institutions, and mandated a high‑level mediation mission led by Togo’s President Faure Gnassingbe, Cabo Verde’s President Jose Maria Pereira Neves, Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye, and ECOWAS Commission President Dr. Omar Touray.
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