The West African Elders Forum (WAEF) has strongly condemned the military coup in Burkina Faso, describing it a democratic sacrilege.
The forum said the coup that betrayed hope and rewound the clock of democratic progress in Burkina Faso and the subregion.
The forum stated this in a statement by its Convener and Chairman of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation(GJF), Dr Goodluck Jonathan, in Abuja on Wednesday.
It stated that the forum was disturbed by the gradual ceding of the region’s civic space to military adventurers and un-elected leaders.
It described the military coup as an unacceptable aberration, adding that Africa could not afford to be returned to an “inglorious era when the people’s rights, freedoms and development impetus were restricted.”
“The West African Elders Forum (WAEF) condemns the military takeover of government and suspension of constitutional order in Burkina Faso by a group of military officers.
“The coup is a political sacrilege that betrays hope, as it rewinds the clock of democratic progress and successes recorded in Burkina Faso and the subregion, in the past decades.
“As a forum, we are disturbed by the gradual ceding of our civil and democratic spaces to military adventurers and unelected leaders. This unfortunate trend is embarrassing to our subregion and the entire continent.
“The military are trained to protect the state and its sovereignty and not to deploy their guns to overthrow elected civil authorities.
“We state without equivocation that the military should not be seen as the alternative to civil rule.
“ Africa had experienced a long spell of military rule in the past and the people of the continent cannot afford to be returned to an inglorious era when the people’s rights, freedoms and development impetus were restricted.
“We condemn this political aberration in our subregion and stress that it is unacceptable,” it stated
The forum encouraged all stakeholders to work in unity in order to safeguard our democracy as well as deliver peace, justice and good governance to our people.
The forum called for the immediate release of deposed President Roch Kabore and all others being detained, urging the military leaders to return the country to constitutional rule
