Former President Goodluck Jonathan on Saturday briefed President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on developments surrounding the recently concluded elections in Guinea-Bissau.
Jonathan, who served as head of the ECOWAS Election Observation Mission, said the post-election unrest in the West African country was not a coup in the conventional sense, describing it instead as a “ceremonial coup” orchestrated by the Head of State.
Speaking with reporters after the meeting, Jonathan said the electoral process had been substantially completed and the outcome was already known before tensions escalated.
“The election was concluded and collation was almost done. In fact, the results are known,” he said. “The key thing is that the winner of that election must be announced.”
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He criticised the arrest of the opposition candidate, insisting the action had no justification.
“The opposition candidate has not committed any offence. He didn’t declare himself winner. If he had done that, it could be seen as treason. There is no reason to arrest him,” he said.
Jonathan urged ECOWAS leaders to engage Guinea-Bissau’s authorities to restore order and uphold the democratic process.
“What I am asking ECOWAS to do is reach out to the leadership in Guinea-Bissau. They know the right thing to do,” he said. “The military cannot be pushed aside because of the implications, but the results must be announced and the winner inaugurated.”
He lamented the recurring political instability across the continent.
“We are tired of negative stories in Africa,” Jonathan said. “What happened in Guinea-Bissau was not a palace coup. We know palace coups. This was not one. I could not find a better term, so I called it a ceremonial coup, conducted by the Head of State himself.”
Jonathan said his briefing was necessary as ECOWAS heads of state are expected to meet soon, noting that Tinubu, as Chairman of the regional bloc, must be fully apprised of the situation.
