Nigeria's Buhari Tells Peers Not To Cling To Power

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has warned fellow West African leaders not to violate their constitutions to stay in power, as regional counterparts push for controversial third terms

Abuja, Nigeria, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Sep, 2020 ) :Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has warned fellow West African leaders not to violate their constitutions to stay in power, as regional counterparts push for controversial third terms.

Speaking at a summit on Monday, Buhari said it was "important that as leaders of our individual member states of ECOWAS, we need to adhere to the constitutional provisions of our countries, particularly on term limits".

He referred to the Economic Community of West African States, which was meeting in Niamey, Niger.

"The challenges facing the sub-region are enormous; from socio-economic matters to security issues, the ECOWAS sub-region cannot therefore afford another political crisis in the guise of tenure elongation," Buhari warned.

"I urge us all to resist the temptation of seeking to perpetuate ourselves in power beyond the constitutional provisions." Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara and Guinea President Alpha Conde are both trying to extend their grip on power.

Dozens have died in protests after 82-year-old Conde pushed through a revamped constitution and filed to run again for a third term.

Clashes over Ouattara's candidacy have also claimed at least eight lives after he decided to run again following the death of prime minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly, his anointed successor.

Buhari, 77, first served as a military ruler in the 1980s after taking power in coup before coming back to be democratically elected as president in 2015. He has pledged to leave office when his second term expires in 2023.