President Muhammadu Buhari has imitated moves towards the actualisation
of the mandate given to Gambian president-elect, Adama Barrow.
According to a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the
President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, in Abuja on Sunday, in the
discharge of his mandate as the
Economic Community of West African States
(ECOWAS) mediator for The Gambia, President Buhari has activated the process
for the execution of his task.
The statement recalled that one of the outcomes of the just-concluded
ECOWAS Summit held on December 17, 2016 in Abuja was the decision to designate
President Muhammadu Buharias the Mediator for The Gambia with Mr. John Mahama,
the out-going President ofGhana as co-mediator. It said the Summit also gave
the terms of reference to include ensuring the safety of Barrow, the political
leaders and the entire population; upholding the result of the presidential
election held on December 1, 2016 and ensuring that the president-elect is
sworn into office on January 19, 2017, in conformity with the constitution of
the country.
According to the statement, on the direction of the President, the
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama is leading a Mediation Support
Team (MST),working with the team of the co-mediator, President Mahama. The
committee has begun immediate consultations with leaders in the sub-region as
well as with international partners. main task of the Mediation Support Team is
to undertake the first phase of the preparatory and support work that would
lead to a high level meeting of the mediator (President Buhari) and the
stakeholders,” it said.
It added that Buhari remained optimistic that a peaceful resolution of
the problem,in line with the laws and the constitution of The Gambia was
possible before the January 19, 2017 inauguration date of the new president.
Tribune
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