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BREAKING: We’re moving in – ECOWAS military chiefs *10 countries vote for invasion
Military operation is at the doorsteps of Niger where a military junta, which took over power on July 26 is currently holding the reins of power after ousting Mohamed Bazoum, the civilian President, as military apparatchik of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), toed the same line with their leaders on Thursday.
The Authorities of the Heads of Government, the highest body of the sub-regional bloc, had on Thursday, last week, strengthened its decision for a military action to flush out the junta after the expiration of a one-week ultimatum to the military leaders to restore Bazoum to office expired without compliance.
On July 29, three days after the military struck, the ECOWAS Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had rallied the leaders to a meeting in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, where a rash of decisions was taken, including placing immediate sanctions, such as border closure, economic blockade, imposition of no-fly zone among others, to be followed with military action.
But undeterred, the junta reacted by snubbing the delegation sent by the body to hand over the demand and broker a possible truce, and instead, declaring the closure of its airspace and days later, threatened to put Bazoum on trial for high treason – an euphemism for the death penalty.
In what seems an escalation of the decision of sub-regional leaders, 10 of the 15 military chiefs of the various countries, were said to have voted to move in militarily to chase away the junta and restore constitutional power, an initiative, believed to have fallen on Nigeria, the largest donor country both financially and militarily.
At a meeting in Accra, the Ghanaian capital, the 10 countries on Thursday, were said to have expressed readiness to participate in a standby force should the need arises, a move meant to chase out the military under the leadership of Abdourahamane Tchiani, with the only dissenting voice being that of Cape Verde, outside countries under military rule.
ECOWAS commissioner, Abdel-Fatau Musah, was quoted to have said: “Let no one be in doubt if everything else fails, the valiant forces of West Africa…are ready to answer to the call of duty.
“By all means available, constitutional order will be restored in the country,” Musah told assembled defence Chiefs from member countries, listing past ECOWAS deployments in Gambia, and Liberia as examples of readiness.
Al Jazeera also quoted Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, to have said, “Democracy is what we stand for and it’s what we encourage. The focus of our gathering is not simply to react to events, but to proactively chart a course that results in peace and promote stability.”
The presidential guards seized power from President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, making the ECOWAS to issue a one-week ultimatum to the military to restore the president or risk sanctions.
The military ignored the ECOWAS threats and vowed to resist foreign intervention.
In the same vein, the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) bloc in Nigeria has endorsed the stand taken by both the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on the political impasse.
The SADC in Nigeria made up of Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, DR Congo, South Africa, Angola, Tanzania and Namibia threw its weight behind the actions taken so far by the continental body and the West African subregional bloc to force the military junta led by General Abdourahamane Tchiani to hand over power back to President Mohamed Bazoum.
Speaking with journalists at Hope of Survival Ophanage Home, Abuja where the SADC donated food items to orphans as part of activities to mark the organisation’s anniversary, the High Commissioner of Namibia to Nigeria and the Dean of the SADC, H.E. Humphrey Geiseb, said the Southern Africa is part of the African Union and definitely concerned about the situations of coups as expressed by ECOWAS which is a regional body just like the Southern Africa Development Community, and equally by the African Union.
He said: “So, we are fully behind the statements and positions of ECOWAS and the African Union.”
Geiseb, while noting that Southern African region is mostly peaceful, as “we hold regular elections and democracy is very strong in our region,” said there is need for continuity of democracy everywhere on the continent.
Geiseb who led other envoys from SADC in Nigeria to the donation of the food items put at over N3 million, explained that the Southern Africa region is part of the African Union, stressing that whatever happens in other regions of the African continent indirectly affects SADC.
Speaking about the decision to visit the orphanage, he said the SADC wanted to provide succour to the orphans and also demonstrate the enduring friendship between the Southern African countries and the government and people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
He said: “We came to celebrate with the orphanage here by making official donations.
“This is our way of honoring the Southern Africa Development Community as well as the Federal Government of Nigeria which has supported strongly the liberation struggle of Southern Africa.
“Today, our sub-continent is free and independent. Many of our countries can recall that the Federal Republic of Nigeria has strongly supported us during the dark days of colonialism.”
While commending the SADC for the gesture, Mrs. Ruth Ibrahim, proprietress of the orphanage home, said the gifts would go a long way in helping her to feed the 75 children under the care of the home.
She, however, called for assistance in paying the school fees of the children in the orphanage home, stressing that it had been difficult for the management to cope with the high cost of education in the country.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has appealed the judgement of the federal high court in Abuja nullifying the timelines issued for the conduct of party primaries and the nomination of candidates.
Alex Izinyon SAN, leading a team of lawyers of the commission in a notice of appeal dated May 25, raised nine grounds it urged the appellate court to consider and vacate the judgment the Federal High Court in Abuja delivered on May 20.
Apart from raising the issue of jurisdiction, which it said the lower court did not determine, INEC also maintained that the legal action the Youth Party (YP) initiated against it was not only hypothetical but academic.
Arguing that failure of the trial court to make pronouncements on the issues, resulted in the denial of fair hearing to the Appellant, the commission also stressed the lower court misinterpreted the provisions of the electoral act.
It said: “The high court erred in law when it held that: ‘It is clear from the wordings of Sections 29(1), 82 and 84 of the Electoral Act, 2026, the following can be understood. Section 29(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026 mandates Political Parties to submit the names of candidates in prescribed forms of the candidates who emerged from its valid primaries which such a political party intends to sponsor at the elections, not later than 120 days before the date of the General Election.
“What is required of Political Parties to do under the Electoral Act, 2026 is to notify the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) 21 days before the holding of its primaries, congresses or conventions, days before the holding of its primaries, congresses or conventions, or any conference or meeting convened for the election of its executive committees, other governing bodies for nominating candidates.
“The Defendant is not mandated to impose a timeframe for political parties to conduct their primaries provided that it will be done and submitted not later than the 120 days provided by the Electoral Act, 2026. See Section 82(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026.”
It was another day of misery in Kwara State, when daredevil terrorists reportedly stormed Yashikira Community in Baruten Local Government Area of Kwara State, and as has been the case in many of the attacks, abducting scores of residents including women and children.
But, apparently to register their authority, the gunmen, who were said to have operated for hours without challenge from the security operatives, were said to have torched the palace of the Emir.
The attackers, which reportedly occurred late Sunday night were said to have announced their presence through heavy firing and after storming the palace of the monarch during the period, set it on fire before whisking away their victims, but a similar attempt at the police station in the community, was repelled.
While some of the residents, narrated how the spent hours without resistance, leaving behind destruction and fear in the border community, another account said the villagers were caught unawares as the gunmen invaded the town under the cover of darkness.
However operatives made up of the police and military personnel, were said to have launched a manhunt immediately for the immediate rescue of the victims, including throwing a cordon in the area as part of the mission.
“The suspect offered ₦500 million to the SPU commander in an attempt to make the team stand down and allow him to contact his associates to move the consignment elsewhere. The offer was rejected immediately and properly documented for further investigation.”
These were the exact words of Olohundare Jimoh Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), with which he detailed how operatives of the Zone 2 Command of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) scoffed at a N500million bribe to turn their eyes off the importation of a huge consignment of drugs imported into the country.
This was part of the details of a major breakthrough by the operatives after bursting a major drug trafficking syndicate in Lagos, which led to the seizure of suspected illicit drugs estimated at ₦7.8 billion and arresting several suspects, including the alleged kingpin.
In the operation, reportedly carried out by officers of the Special Protection Unit (SPU) in collaboration with divisional police detectives, the operatives, were said to have stormed a house in Mende, Maryland area of Lagos, following months of surveillance and intelligence gathering coordinated by the Zone 2 Headquarters.
The recovered drugs consisted of hundreds of bags of suspected Canadian Loud, allegedly stored in the residence of the prime suspect, Jimoh, said disclosing that the suspect was apprehended on May 19 after weeks of strategic monitoring by operatives.
Offering further details, he said the operation was executed with technical support and guidance from the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, alongside coordinated efforts between the SPU and divisional police teams.
Jimoh revealed that during the operation, the suspect allegedly attempted to bribe the SPU commander with ₦500 million to compromise the mission and allow the movement of the drug consignment.
The AIG described the development as a reflection of the renewed professionalism and operational discipline being entrenched in the Force under the current policing strategy.
He noted that the success of the operation underscored the importance of deploying specialized police units alongside conventional divisional teams in tackling organized crime.
According to him, the operation demonstrated the effectiveness of rapid containment strategies, intelligence-led policing, and professional conduct among the operatives involved in the raid.
“Rapid containment was achieved as the Special Protection Unit worked with divisional teams to secure the perimeter and prevent escape or interference with evidence.
“The operation was intelligence-driven, following months of surveillance and technical monitoring before the raid was carried out.
“The immediate rejection and documentation of the bribe attempt also reflect the standard expected from redeployed personnel at the divisional level,” Jimoh added.
Reacting to the development, the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, commended the operatives for their professionalism, saying the success of the operation validated the ongoing redeployment of personnel to divisions and units across Lagos and Ogun states.
The IGP noted: “Policing must be close to the people, and our specialized units must work side by side with divisional teams on the ground.
“The professionalism shown by the SPU commander in rejecting a ₦500 million bribe and following due procedure is the standard we expect. It shows that when you put your best foot forward at the grassroots, you get results and restore public trust.”
Disu further assured that the Force leadership would continue to reward integrity while holding officers accountable to the highest ethical standards.
Police authorities said exhibits recovered during the operation have been properly documented and will be tendered in court. The suspects are currently in custody while investigations continue to track down other members of the drug trafficking network.
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