A dozen Heads of State of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, met in Lungi, Sierra Leone on July 19, 2026. They issued the usually bland communique on a single currency, supported the illegal violation of a sister country’s sovereignty and made false declarations on the region’s political situation and democracy.
The West African leaders spoke tongue-in-cheek when they declared that they are satisfied with “the steady progress made in democratic consolidation and political governance, as well as the relative stability and resilience of the region, amidst increasing geopolitical and geostrategic pressures.” But what satisfaction in democratic consolidation can they be talking about when, of the current twelve countries in ECOWAS, Guinea-Bissau is under direct military rule, the five-year military junta in Guinea headed by General Mamadi Doumbouya has just on May 31, 2026 shed its military uniform for civilian regalia with the people having no free choice, while Presidents Alassane Ouattara of Côte d’Ivoire and Faure Gnassingbé of Togo are civilian coup plotters who continue to subvert the constitutional term limits in their countries? In fact, Gnassingbé has been in power for twenty-one years since his 2005 coup.
