The presidents and representatives of 12 member states of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are set to converge on the State House Conference Centre, Abuja, for an Extraordinary Summit on Sunday, July 7. This is as the tenure of President Bola Tinubu as the Chairman of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the ECOWAS ends on July 9.
The meeting which will begin at 11:00 am, would likely see the West African leaders pick a new chair to steer the affairs of the bloc for the next year.
However, there are indications that leaders may extend Tinubu’s tenure to give him time to possibly win back Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso into the bloc. A presidency source who spoke to Punch said,
“Some people say he should hand over, and others say he should continue. But they will decide tomorrow.” Tinubu was elected Chairman of the Authority at the 63rd Ordinary Session of the regional bloc held last July in Bissau, the capital of Guinea-Bissau.
“We will take democracy seriously. Democracy is very tough, but it is the form of government,” the Nigerian leader said after he received handover documents from the outgoing Chairman, Guinea-Bissau’s President, Umaro Embaló. During his tenure, Tinubu highlighted the alarming levels of insecurity and the increasing pattern of military coups in the region, stressing that these issues demand urgent and concerted efforts from all member states.
