MUHAMMADU Buhari, the Nigerian President has called on member states of the Economic Community of West African States, (ECOWAS) to adhere to constitutional provisions of their countries.
According to the Presidency official Twitter handle, Buhari said this while addressing ECOWAS Heads of State and Government in Niamey, Niger Republic on Monday.
“It is important that as leaders of our individual Member-States of ECOWAS, we need to adhere to the constitutional provisions of our countries, particularly on term limits. This is one area that generates crisis and political tension in our sub-region,” Buhari said.
He added that the sub-region of the ECOWAS is already facing socio-economic and security crisis and cannot afford another political crisis.
“As it is, the challenges facing the sub-region are enormous; from socio-economic matters to security issues, the ECOWAS sub-region cannot, therefore, afford another political crisis, in the guise of tenure elongation,” the Nigerian President noted.
He advised the Head of States to resist the ‘temptation’ to perpetuate themselves in power beyond the provision of their constitutions.
“I urge us all to resist the temptation of seeking to perpetuate ourselves in power beyond the constitutional provisions,” he added.
Buhari left Nigeria on Monday to attend the ECOWAS summit in Niger with COVID-19, economy, security and democracy as top agenda.
A State House press release had stated that the President would present a special report on COVID-19 after his appointment as the ECOWAS Champion on the Fight against COVID-19 during the Extraordinary Virtual Summit of ECOWAS on April 23, 2020.
Lukman Abolade is an Investigative reporter with The ICIR. Reach out to him via labolade@icirnigeria.org, on twitter @AboladeLAA and FB @Correction94