• Jonathan demands ECOWAS, AU publish Guinea-Bissau election results
• Ex-president says Embaló’s ‘self-announced coup’ defies logic
• Calls for release of opposition candidate Fernando Dias
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Former President Goodluck Jonathan has said the military intervention that halted Guinea-Bissau’s presidential election was not a conventional coup but a “ceremonial coup”, insisting that ECOWAS and the African Union must release the collated results to protect democratic integrity.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja on Friday after returning from the country, Jonathan said it was troubling that President Umaro Embaló announced he had been overthrown while freely communicating with global media.
Jonathan led the West African Elders Forum Election Observation Mission to monitor the presidential and legislative polls held last Sunday.
Jonathan questioned the nature of the events, saying no genuine military takeover allows a sitting president to remain in contact with the world.
“Specifically, what happened in Guinea-Bissau was not a coup; maybe, for want of a better word, I would say it was a ceremonial coup,” he said.
“It is the president that first announced the coup. While it was supposedly happening, he was using his phone to grant interviews. Who is fooling who?”
The former Nigerian leader said the suspension of the electoral process mirrored the instability Guinea-Bissau experienced during the “dark days” between 2011 and 2014.
Jonathan revealed that results from all nine regions had been fully collated before Embaló declared that soldiers had taken over the state.
He said ECOWAS and AU observers present across the regions had certified the collation process and therefore have a responsibility to publish the authentic results.
“They must announce the results,” Jonathan said.
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“They cannot change them. They should tally everything and let the world know who won the election. They owe the world that responsibility.”
He also condemned the detention of opposition candidate Fernando Dias, saying he “committed no offence” and must be released immediately.
Before the military intervention, both Embaló and his main rival, Fernando Dias, had claimed victory without official results. Soldiers later seized institutions and suspended the election.
Embaló, who once chaired ECOWAS and is a retired military officer, said he had been arrested — a claim Jonathan said contradicts known patterns of coups in the region.
Jonathan was evacuated from Guinea-Bissau on Thursday night along with other members of the observer mission.
