Military coups were common throughout Africa in the decades following independence, and there is concern that they are becoming more common now.
Two have already occurred this year: a military takeover in Burkina Faso and a failed coup attempt in Guinea Bissau.
In addition, in 2021, there were more coups in Africa than in prior years.
This brings us to the question of what is the hope for Nigeria? Is this a sign for Nigeria?
Former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Joe Kesh, analyses the coups and their causes.
Mr. Kesh agrees that African governments are attacking democracy by their acts and inactions, citing the Guinea coup as an example, in which the military was pushed to the front lines without the required backing to fight the conflict.
The safety of its residents should be the main priority. People have lost faith in the government that they elected.
Because there were few television and radio stations in the 1960s and 1970s, it was simple for the military to stage a coup. All they had to do was march to NITEL and take the few television stations, then proceed to arrest the president.
It will be tough for Nigeria to stage a coup because we have developed and become larger; we now have a large number of television and radio stations, as well as social media, and seizing them all at once will be difficult.
When coups occur, the responsibility should not always be placed on the military’s political ambitions; instead, we should look at the political class’s inability to do what is required, to open up political space, to develop the country, and to build up the country’s human capacity.
It is in the hands of the political class to put an end to coups because when people flock to the streets to celebrate after a coup, it signifies that the political leaders failed. After all, if they had, the people would fight hard to retain them in power.
It is in the power of the leaders to offer what is required and to do what the people desire, such as provide security, development, and necessities. There will be no coups if they provide solid leadership that is popular.
The political leaders have not only seized the political space, but they have also seized the system itself in such a way that it will be very difficult for them to be voted out, forgetting that democracy is not just about elections, but elections give people the confidence that they place in people who believe in them and who will provide what they require.
