In a manner signaling being unperturbed by sub regional protestations, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, leader of the Niger junta, has said the army will hand over power to a civilian government within the next three years.
He stated this in a televised broadcast on Saturday night.
Tchiani spoke after meeting with a delegation of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) led by the former Nigeria’s Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd).
General Tchiani said within a month, the junta will form a committee to study and form the new constitution of the country.
He also maintained that Niger does not want to go to war but quickly put a caveat that the county will defend itself if the need arises.
Nonetheless, he assured that the door for negotiation was still open.
Until the time of filing this report, ECOWAS is yet to react to the speech of the junta leader but Abdulsalami is expected to brief the regional bloc on the outcome of the meeting.
In another reassuring message, Niger’s military-appointed prime minister, Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine, stated that the deposed president Mohamed Bazoum would be safe and unharmed.
Theliberationnews recall that President Bola Tinubu on Friday warned of impending ‘grave consequences’ should the military rulers of Niger allow Bazoum’s health to deteriorate while under house arrest.
Lamine Zeine told The New York Times that, “Nothing will happen to him, because we don’t have a tradition of violence in Niger.”
Niger’s new rulers have so far shown little flexibility and warned against an “illegal aggression”.
However, Radio France International reported that thousands of volunteers turned out in central Niamey on Saturday answering a call to register as civilian auxiliaries who could be mobilised to support the army.
This is coming on the heels of ECOWAS force readiness to intervene in Niger ‘anytime the order is given’, after a two-day meeting of the regional bloc’s military chiefs in Accra, capital city of Ghana.
