Supporters of Niger's National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP) hold up a placard with a photo of General Abdourahamane Tiani in Niamey on August 6, 2023 ( AFP)

Nigerian Senate urged diplomatic solution to Niger crisis, but did not refuse military action as claimed

This article is more than one year old.
Published on August 9, 2023 at 13:36
3 min read
By Tonye BAKARE, AFP Nigeria

After the ultimatum given to Nigerien putschists by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to restore toppled president Mohamed Bazoum expired on August 6, 2023, online posts claimed that Nigeria’s leader Bola Tinubu – who is also the regional bloc’s chairman – sought the approval of his country’s Senate to declare war on Niger but was denied. However, this is not what happened. Tinubu wrote to inform the Senate about the ECOWAS resolutions regarding the coup and asked for support in implementing them. Although the Senate responded by urging a diplomatic resolution to the Niger crisis, it commended Tinubu and ECOWAS for their “prompt response and position taken” and pledged “total support” to the regional bloc.

On August 5, 2023, American YouTuber Jackson Hinkle claimed in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that Tinubu had written to his country’s Senate to seek approval for military intervention in neighbouring Niger and was “rejected”.

A screenshot of the false post, taken on July 7, 2023

Hinkle has a history of posting pro-Russian and far-right commentary, including false claims about the Ukraine-Russian war (here and here).

In Nigeria, news sites (here and here) and Facebook accounts (including here and here) made the same claim.

Hinkle’s post includes a photo of Tinubu greeting French President Emmanuel Macron.

Soldiers led by former presidential guard commander General Abdourahamane Tiani ousted Bazoum on July 26, 2023 (archived here).

After an emergency session called by Tinubu, ECOWAS demanded Bazoum be reinstated within seven days from July 30, 2023 (archived here).

The regional bloc sent a delegation to Niger on August 3, 2023, to do “whatever it takes to ensure a conclusive and amicable resolution of the situation in Niger”, according to a statement from Tinubu’s office.

Ahead of the ultimatum deadline – which expired on August 6, 2023 without Bazoum being reinstated – Tinubu wrote to inform Nigeria’s senators about ECOWAS’ resolutions and request support for their implementation.

He did not, however, ask for approval for Nigeria to send troops into Niger, nor did the Senate turn down a request of that nature.

Senate response

Following the receipt of his letter, the Nigerian Senate debated its contents in a closed session on August 4, 2023. The session did not include a vote on Tinubu’s letter, Senate President Godswill Akpabio said on August 5, 2023.

Akpabio said that during the plenary Tinubu had sought the support of senators for the successful implementation of the ECOWAS resolutions.

After its initial emergency meeting, ECOWAS said in a July 30, 2023 communique containing its resolutions that it would explore “all measures” including the “use of force” if constitutional authority was not restored (archived here).

But Akpabio insisted Tinubu’s letter did not ask for the “approval of the parliament or the approval of this Senate to go to war as being erroneously suggested (archived here).”

The Senate urged Tinubu and other ECOWAS leaders to continue to explore “political and diplomatic” options to resolve the crisis, said Akpabio.

However, reading the resolutions of the Senate in response to Tinubu’s letter during the plenary, Akpabio pledged the Senate’s “total support” to “ECOWAS leadership under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu” in resolving the Nigerien crisis and “returning the country to democratic governance”.

Nigerian constitution

To declare war on Niger, the Nigerian president must seek approval from the country’s national assembly, comprising the Senate and the House of Representatives.

According to Section 5 (4a) of the Nigerian Constitution, approval must be given by both chambers of the assembly at a joint session (archived here).

Section 5 (4b) says that the president must seek and receive the “prior approval” of the Senate before sending troops “on combat duty outside Nigeria”.

However, Section 5 (5) empowers the president after consultation with the National Defence Council to deploy Nigerian troops on combat duties outside the country if “he is satisfied that the national security is under imminent threat or danger”.

But the president must seek the approval of the Senate within seven days of the start of combat. The Senate is mandated to either grant the approval or “refuse the said consent within 14 days”.

Crisis summit

Since the ultimatum expired, efforts by ECOWAS and the United States to convince Niger’s new rulers to hand back power to Bazoum have made little headway (archived here).

ECOWAS has not ruled out military intervention, Tinubu said ahead of a crisis summit in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, scheduled for August 10, 2023.

However, he still believes diplomacy is the “best way forward” to resolve the crisis, according to his spokesman Ajuri Ngelale.

“No options have been taken off of the table,” Ngelale said on August 8, 2023.

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