ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musah, on Friday, highlighted the dire conditions under which ousted Niger president, Mohamed Bazoum and his son are being held by the country’s coup leaders.
Musah stated this on Channels TV amid reports that the coup leaders threatened to kill Bazoum if ECOWAS intervened militarily.
He said, “We are going there, if need be, to rescue President Bazoum who is living in very terrible conditions today. He is being denied medical attention, he’s being denied even access to his usual food.
“His son, who is also in detention, has lost so many kilos already. They are being held in these inhumane conditions and we cannot just sit back idle and depend on the goodwill of these people who are disrupting the democratic process in the country.”
It was earlier reported that leaders of ECOWAS on Thursday in a summit held in Abuja opted to maintain the diplomatic route with military force still on the table.
Musah further stated, “Yesterday’s communique also made it very clear that this junta will pay dearly if anything happens to the safety, security, or the physical integrity of Bazoum, his family, or members of his government. That was clearly done.
“We are not going to hold back because they are holding the president hostage. If they dare, if they should harm in any way, then they are going to pay very dearly for that. So, this is a tactic.”
