In a conversation with reporters in Abuja, Kimiebi Ebienfa, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ spokesperson, revealed this.
Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, the former president, is safe and no longer in Guinea-Bissau. He departed on a chartered flight with Mohamed Chambas and other members of his delegation, he claimed.
Before the military declared its takeover, Jonathan, the head of the West African Elders Forum Election Observation Mission, was in the nation observing the presidential and legislative elections last Sunday.
The Federal administration of Guinea-Bissau stated on Thursday that former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is safe and has left the country after the military coup that overthrew the administration.
In a conversation with reporters in Abuja, Kimiebi Ebienfa, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ spokesperson, revealed this.
Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, the former president, is safe and no longer in Guinea-Bissau. He departed on a chartered flight with Mohamed Chambas and other members of his delegation, he claimed.
Before the military declared its takeover, Jonathan, the head of the West African Elders Forum Election Observation Mission, was in the nation observing the presidential and legislative elections last Sunday.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs criticized the coup for resulting in “an unconstitutional change of government in the Republic of Guinea-Bissau” and said it learnt of the development “with profound dismay and deep concern” in a statement released on Thursday.
The ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance was said to have been violated by the action.
On Wednesday, military officials declared “total control” of Guinea-Bissau, shut down its borders, and halted elections, sending the country into chaos. Major access routes were blocked by soldiers as heavy gunfire was heard close to the presidential residence.
A command “composed of all branches of the armed forces was taking over the leadership of the country until further notice,” declared General Denis N’Canha, chief of the presidential military office.
Umaro Sissoco Embalo, the current president, declared, “I have been deposed,” over the phone with France24.
According to AFP, he was inside a structure behind military headquarters “with the chief of staff and the minister of the interior.”
In Sunday’s polls, Embalo and opposition candidate Fernando Dias had already declared victory; preliminary results are anticipated on Thursday.
According to the military, it discovered a scheme combining “national drug lords” and the importation of weapons “to alter the constitutional order.”
Military authorities declared the reopening of the nation’s borders later on Thursday. Inspector General of the Armed Forces General Lansana Mansali told AFP that “all borders are now open.”
In the midst of intense political unrest, almost 6,700 security personnel, including members of the ECOWAS Stabilization Force, had been sent in for the polls. One of the poorest nations in the world, Guinea-Bissau, has had multiple coups since gaining independence, including four successful takeovers and multiple attempts.
