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Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is safe and has left Guinea-Bissau following the military coup that toppled the country’s government, the Federal Government confirmed on Thursday.
The spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, made this known in an interview with journalists in Abuja.
“Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is very safe and out of Guinea-Bissau. He left with a special flight with members of his delegation, including Mohamed Chambas,” he said.
Jonathan, who led the West African Elders Forum Election Observation Mission, had been in the country monitoring last Sunday’s presidential and legislative elections before the military announced it had seized power.
In a joint statement on Wednesday, Filipe Nyusi, former president of Mozambique and Head of the African Union Election Observation Mission; Issifu Kamara, Head of the Economic Community of West African States Election Observation Mission; and Jonathan condemned the coup, describing it as a direct attempt to disrupt Guinea-Bissau’s democratic process.
They appealed for calm among residents and reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Guinea-Bissau “during this sensitive period,” stressing “the importance of preserving peace, stability, and the well-being of the Bissau-Guinean people.”
Also, the Federal Government condemned the coup in strong terms, warning that it represents a serious threat to democracy and regional stability.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it learned of the development “with profound dismay and deep concern,” faulting the coup for leading to “an unconstitutional change of government in the Republic of Guinea-Bissau.”
It described the action as a violation of the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance.
Guinea-Bissau was thrown into turmoil on Wednesday after military officers declared “total control” of the country, closed its borders, and suspended electoral activities. Heavy gunfire was heard near the presidential palace, and soldiers blocked major access routes.
General Denis N’Canha, head of the presidential military office, announced that a command “composed of all branches of the armed forces was taking over the leadership of the country until further notice.”
In a phone call with France24, incumbent President Umaro Sissoco Embalo said, “I have been deposed.”
He was reportedly inside a building behind military headquarters “with the chief of staff and the minister of the interior,” according to AFP.
Both Embalo and opposition candidate Fernando Dias had already claimed victory in Sunday’s polls, with provisional results expected on Thursday.
The military claimed it uncovered a plot involving “national drug lords” and the importation of weapons “to alter the constitutional order.”
Later on Thursday, military authorities announced that the country’s borders had been reopened. “All borders are now open,” General Lansana Mansali, Inspector General of the Armed Forces, told AFP.
More than 6,700 security personnel, including members of the ECOWAS Stabilisation Force, had been deployed for the elections amid widespread political tension. Guinea-Bissau, one of the world’s poorest countries, has faced repeated coups, with four successful takeovers and several attempts since independence.
