The Peoples
Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has called for a
tight security measure in the wake of the withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso and
Niger from the Economic Community of West African States.
The
military regimes of the three Sahel countries who have been at loggerheads with
ECOWAS over sanctions imposed on them, announced their withdrawal forthwith
from the regional bloc in a joint statement on Sunday.
With the
withdrawal, many believe Nigeria’s fight against terrorism could be affected
considering the country borders Niger Republic up north.
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Concerned
about the development, the PDP Presidential
candidate, Atiku, in
a short message posted on twitter on Sunday, described the
situation as a “serious diplomatic meltdown,” saying Nigeria must now double
its efforts to protect its security interests.
“Reports
about the withdrawal of three countries from our sub-regional body,
@ecowas_cedeao, is concerning. It is a matter of serious diplomatic meltdown.
We must keep the country’s national security interest, especially the fight
against terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, and others in focus while we appraise
the situation,” he said.
