( 5 minutes read)
· The West African bloc ECOWAS will likely decide tomorrow whether to lift sanctions imposed on Mali after last month’s coup
· Nigerian former president Goodluck Jonathan, who mediated the truce between ECOWAS and the military junta in Mali called the 15-nation bloc’s sanctions “unfortunate”
· West African leaders were putting pressure on the ruling military junta to return power to civilians. The coup that took place on August 18, toppled president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita
The West African bloc ECOWAS will likely decide tomorrow whether to lift sanctions imposed on Mali after last month’s coup
Nigerian former president Goodluck Jonathan, who mediated the truce between ECOWAS and the military junta in Mali called the 15-nation bloc’s sanctions “unfortunate”. West African leaders were putting pressure on the ruling military junta to return power to civilians. The coup that took place on August 18, toppled President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.
ECOWAS imposed sanctions, which include closing borders and restricting trade, as a part of its pressure tactics on Mali. One of the conditions for lifting sanctions was that a civilian should run the transition government until fresh elections are held. The junta asked for the sanctions to be lifted this week after former defense minister Bah Ndaw was named interim president. He is tasked to govern the country for at most 18 months before holding polls.
The 70-year-old retired colonel will be sworn in on Friday. Junta leader Colonel Assimi Goita will serve as interim vice president. He also will be sworn in on the same day. Ndaw, according to the plan submitted by the Committee who appointed him, will then appoint a prime minister. The speculation is on who would be the prime minister. The decision is expected within a few days.
Jonathan was in Mali recently to assess the progress the junta has made in returning order to the country. Ghanaian President and current ECOWAS leader Nana Akufo-Addo will announce the decision on the sanctions. The trillion dollar question is when that announcement would be made. Mali is a fragile nation of some 19 million people living in abject poverty. The lethal jihadist insurgency since 2012 has created a lot of tensions in the country. The junta has yet to respond to other ECOWAS demands, such as the release of other officials detained during the coup
