Citizens Support Is Key For ECOWAS Troops Success In Niger – NCCE

Ghana’s National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) says that plans by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to commit troops to Niger to ensure a return to constitutional rule would be futile if the citizens support the coup.

ECOWAS military chiefs are currently meeting in Ghana to strategize on how best to send troops to Niger to restore constitutional order after the military junta ousted President Mohamed Bazoum.

Speaking at a meeting with officials from the Public Affairs Engagement Department of Parliament, the Deputy Chair of the NCCE, Samuel Asare Akuamoah, stressed the need for both institutions to collaborate in safeguarding the democracy of Ghana and other countries in the ECOWAS bloc.

“We can marshal all the forces to go and fight whoever is engaged in a coup or undemocratic change but if the people on the ground say that is what they want, what will we achieve? And so we need to take our mandate seriously and raise the level of awareness of the ordinary person on the street to be able to appreciate why we must protect our democracy and ensure that our democracy is never overthrown.”

“There are violent extremist groups in the sub-region fighting and telling the ordinary people to allow them to solve the problems that government and its appointees cannot solve. And if these extremist groups are winning the confidence of ordinary people, we need to raise the bar of public engagement.”