Guinea’s military leader calls for addressing ‘deep-rooted causes’ of coups in Africa

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) – Guinea’s military leader Col. Mamadi Doumbouya has called on the international community to “look to and address the deep-rooted causes” of coups in Africa.

“I want us all to be well aware of the fact that the putschist is not only the one who takes up arms to overthrow the government. The real putschists … who are not the subject of any condemnation, are also those who scheme, who cheat to manipulate the texts of the constitution in order to stay in power eternally,” Doumbouya said at the 78th UN General Assembly session in New York.

According to him, the coups in Africa were staged by soldiers in a bid to save their countries from presidents’ “broken promises.”

Since 2020, eight coups have been staged in West and Central African nations including Guinea.

Doumbouya, who was sworn in as transition president following a military coup in September 2021 that deposed President Alpha Conde, has bowed to international pressure and pledged to return power to an elected government by the end of 2024.

He said he led soldiers to oust Conde to prevent the country from “slipping into complete chaos” and that the situation was similar in other countries hit by coups.

However, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu and head of West Africa’s regional bloc of ECOWAS insists military coups are wrong, “as is any tilted civilian political arrangement that perpetuates injustice.”

As Doumbouya spoke, Guineans took to the streets in front of the UN in New York, to express their dissatisfaction with the current conduct of the transition government and the violations of rights in Guinea.