The Association of Niger Municipalities (AMN) and the Association of Regions of Niger (ARENI), which unite all territorial units of the country, expressed support for the rebels who came to power in Niger, according to a joint statement entitled “Declaration of Niger Territorial Units.”
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A previously informed source said Niger would host a nationwide meeting of local government leaders on Saturday, a month after the rebel military took power.
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“We, the Association of Municipalities of Niger and the Association of Regions of Niger, uniting all 262 territorial units of Niger … express our strong support for the actions announced by the National Council for the Defense of the Fatherland for a successful transition,” a document published by local publication Aïr Info Agadez says.
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The associations hailed the “foresight of the new authorities, which shows their commitment to decentralization.”
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The authors of the document also condemned the sanctions imposed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) against Niger, and also criticized “the behavior of some of the leaders of these organizations.”
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In addition, the associations condemned cases of “interference in the internal affairs” of Niger by “certain foreign powers hiding behind these organizations.” The signatories called on ECOWAS and UEMOA to lift the sanctions immediately.
The document also says that the territorial units of Niger express their readiness to respond to any requests from the new authorities “on the way to their noble mission to protect the fatherland.”
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At the end of July, the military of Niger announced on national television the removal from power of the country’s president, Mohamed Bazum. The leaders of most Western countries and the regional organization ECOWAS condemned the coup. In early August, the participants in the emergency meeting of the Chiefs of General Staff of the Armed Forces of the ECOWAS countries, held in Abuja (Nigeria), adopted a plan in case of military intervention in Niger.
