Former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has publicly alleged that the recent military intervention in Guinea-Bissau was a staged event, a political ruse designed to undermine the democratic process rather than a genuine coup d’état.
Jonathan, who was in the country leading the West African Elders Forum Election Observation Mission, made the startling claim during a recent interview. He characterized the event as a “ceremonial coup,” pointing to a series of highly unusual actions by the nation’s president, Umaro Embaló.
“Specifically, what happened in Guinea-Bissau was not a coup,” Jonathan stated. “Maybe, for want of a better word, I would say it was a ceremonial coup. It is the president himself, President Umaro Embaló, who announced the coup.”
The former president, who famously conceded Nigeria’s 2015 presidential election to Muhammadu Buhari, expressed deep skepticism about the official narrative. He highlighted the paradox of a supposedly detained head of state freely using his phone to address global media.
“Who is fooling who?” Jonathan questioned. “I’m a Nigerian, and I know how heads of state are treated when there’s a real coup. Embaló announced he had been arrested while clearly not being under duress. Basically, what happened is quite disturbing to me, who believes in democracy.”
Jonathan revealed that the political maneuver was personally more painful to witness than his own historic electoral loss. The incident unfolded as regional officials were awaiting the announcement of election results, which Jonathan now insists must be made public.
“My conviction is that—and my charge to ECOWAS and AU is that—they must announce the results,” he demanded. “They have the results because AU and ECOWAS officials were at all the regions when the results were collated. They cannot change those results. They should tally all those results and announce. Let the world know who won that election. And they owe the world that responsibility.”
In addition to demanding transparency for the election, Jonathan also called for the immediate release of the opposition candidate, Fernando Dias, whom he stressed had “not committed any offence.” His allegations cast a shadow over the political crisis, shifting the focus from a military takeover to what he implies is an orchestrated power grab.
Discussion about this post