ECOWAS has dismissed the announcement by Niger’s coup leaders that civilian rule could not be restored for three years, even as hundreds of the junta’s supporters gathered in the capital Niamey in a rally on Sunday to show their support for the military takeover.
On Saturday, Gen Abdourahamane Tchiani said a national dialogue was needed to lay the foundations for a new political order in Niger.
However, ECOWAS’s Political Commissioner, Abdel-Fatau Musa, said the timetable was unacceptable.
ECOWAS has threatened military action to restore the ousted president.
Crowds have again rallied in the capital, Niamey, in support of the coup.
The demonstrators who flew both Niger and Russian flags expressed solidarity with the soldiers who overthrew their elected president, Mohamed Bazoum, last month.
Junta/ECOWAS parley:Junta proposes three-year transition to civilian rule
It followed an announcement on Saturday by the military ruler, Gen Abdourahamane Tchiani, warning against any outside intervention.
He also announced a three-year transition plan, and said the principles for the transition would be decided within 30 days at a “dialogue” hosted by the coup leaders.
In a televised address shortly after meeting a peace delegation from the West African regional bloc, ECOWAS, Gen Tchiani said the country did not want a war but warned they defend against any foreign intervention.
He denounced the ECOWAS sanctions imposed on the country saying they were not aimed at finding a solution but “to bring us to our knees and humiliate us”.
It was a further show of defiance after the ECOWAS mediators held peace talks with the junta leaders in a last-ditch effort to reach a diplomatic solution to the political crisis.
ECOWAS has said its standby force is ready to intervene if peaceful efforts to resolve the crisis are unsuccessful.
