ECOWAS Parliament Kicks Against Military Action In Niger

<h4>ECOWAS Parliament Kicks Against Military Action In Niger<&sol;h4>&NewLine;<p><strong><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;openlife&period;ng&sol;">OpenLife Nigeria<&sol;a><&sol;strong> reports that the Economic Community of West African States&comma; ECOWAS&comma; parliament was&comma; on Saturday&comma; divided over how best to address the political impasse caused by the coup in Niger Republic&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>While some members advocated actions that would stem military intrusion into governance within the region&comma; others said dialogue and diplomacy were the best ways to solve the crisis&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The positions were taken when the 22 parliamentarians held an extraordinary meeting&comma; virtually&comma; to discuss the Niger Republic impasse&period;<br &sol;>&NewLine;The members&comma; who were against military action&comma; put forward the fate that could befall the masses if the country was invaded by forces trying to dislodge the coupists&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Among the speakers who spoke against military invasion of Niger Republic were Idris Wase and Ali Ndume&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Wase&comma; the first Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of ECOWAS&comma; berated President Bola Tinubu&comma; the ECOWAS Chairman&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>He accused the President of unilaterally closing the Nigerian-Niger border and cutting electricity without the approval of the Nigerian National Assembly&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Wase added&colon; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;When the Russia-Ukraine war started&comma; people thought it was to be a sharp war&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;vanguardngr&period;com&sol;">&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;A year after&comma; the war is still lingering on with the attendant economic squander and wanton destruction of lives and properties&period;<&sol;a><br &sol;>&NewLine;&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;The sub-regional military chiefs knows what they stand to benefit economically&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>That’s why they’re eager to militarily intervene in Niger&period; Most of them are corrupt&period; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;Any war on Niger will have adverse effects on 60&percnt; of Nigeria&comma; especially Northern Nigeria&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>On his part&comma; Senator Ndume said&colon; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;We are the representatives of the people&period; Whatever action that must be taken should be dependent on what our people want&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;The ECOWAS Chairman&comma; President Tinubu&comma; wrote the Nigerian Senate on the planned military intervention in Niger and the Red Chamber vehemently opposed the use of force&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>They prefer&comma; instead&comma; dialogue should be adopted in resolving the impasse&period; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;President Tinubu has no right to close the Niger-Nigeria border&comma; cut electricity without the approval of the Nigerian National Assembly&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;It is not the Niger junta that are suffering the sanctions&comma; rather it is innocent people&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;