Sept. 24, 2021

President Muhammadu Buhari told world leaders Friday in New York that unconstitutional takeover of power, sometimes in reaction to unilateral changes of constitutions by some leaders, must not be tolerated by the international community.

According to the president’s spokesman, Femi Adesina, Buhari said this in his speech at the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly, where he warned that democratic gains of the past decades in West Africa ‘‘are now being eroded’’ due to these negative trends.

He affirmed Nigeria’s support to efforts by ECOWAS, AU and the UN to address this growing challenge, saying, ‘‘As leaders of our individual Member-States we need to adhere to the constitutional provisions of our countries, particularly on term limits. This is one area that generates crisis and political tension in our sub-region.’’

The President urged the international community not only to deal with the symptoms of conflict but also the immediate causes that fuel conflicts in the first place.

‘‘These include poor and undemocratic governance, human rights abuses, poverty, ignorance, injustice and inequalities.

‘‘There are no easy solutions to these conditions. They require long term investments and more effective international cooperation. In this connection, my delegation underscores the importance of promoting peaceful, unfettered, and inclusive participation of states in global actions towards conflict prevention.

‘‘This will facilitate the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the African Union Agenda 2063.”