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Six persons were reportedly detained over the weekend in Sao Tome and Principe, a country in Central Africa, following a failed coup attempt.
Announcing the development at a media briefing on Friday, Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada said those arrested included Delfim Neves, a former president of the national assembly, and Arlecio Costa, identified as a former soldier.
According to Al Jazeera, the development comes barely two weeks after Neves lost his position in the national assembly after the Independent Democratic Action, which Travoada belongs to, won a majority of legislative seats.
In a statement on Sunday, the Nigerian government condemned the attempted coup, adding that it stands in solidarity with the democratically elected government of Sao Tome and Principe.
“The Government of Nigeria condemns, in its entirety, the attempted coup d’etat reported in the early hours of 25th November, 2022 in Sao Tome and Principe and stands in solidarity with the democratically elected government of the country,” the statement by Francisca Omayuli, spokesperson to the foreign affairs ministry, reads.
“Nigeria calls on the good people of São Tomé and Principe to lend necessary support to the newly elected government of Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada, in its efforts to address the challenges bedeviling the country and leverage on the gains of democracy for the good of its populace.
“The Government of Nigeria will continue to support the African Union’s position, upheld by the various Regional Economic Communities that coups d’état in Africa will not be condoned.”
Also, in a tweet on Friday, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, president of Guinea-Bissau, condemned the attempted coup, describing Sao Tome and Principe as a model of democracy in Africa.
“I condemn with the greatest pain and firmness the coup attempt that took place on the night of Thursday 24 to Friday 25 November in Sao Tome and Principe. #SAOTOME -ET-PRINCIPE is one of the countries considered as a model of parliamentary democracy in Africa,” Embaló wrote.
The coup attempt in Sao Tome and Principe comes amid several coups in African countries in recent years.
The most recent was in September 2022, when Ibrahim Traore, army captain in Burkina Faso, ousted Paul-Henri Damiba, the country’s military leader.
