By Halimah Olamide
Mohammed Bazoum, the toppled Niger President has revealed to the European Union, United States, and ECOWAS that he is being held hostage.
He made this known in a recent letter in a Facebook post on Friday, stating that Niger is being attacked by a military junta and he is only one of the hundreds of citizens who have been illegally imprisoned.
Bazoum warned that if the coup launched against his government succeeds, there will be devastating consequences in the country and globally.
“Our government came to power thanks to democratic elections in 2021. Any attempt to overthrow a legitimate government must be fought, and we appreciate the firm and unequivocal condemnations of this cynical effort to undermine Niger’s remarkable progress in democracy.
The United States, the African and European Unions and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have said loud and clear: this coup must stop and the junta must release all those they have illegally arrested.
“The conspirators of the coup d’État wrongly claim that they acted to protect Niger’s security. They claim that our war against jihadist terrorists has failed and that my economic and social governance, including partnerships with the United States and Europe, has harmed our country.” He said.