Presidency sealed off in Niger
By Babagana Jidda Kanempress
26th July 2023
Members of Niger’s Presidential Guard have sealed off the residence and offices of President Mohamed Bazoum, in a move as a “fit of temper” by the elite troops and “talks” underway.
The reason for the guards’ behaviour and what was being discussed in the talks were not given.
Reports say access was denied, with some areas blocked off to Bazoum’s official home and offices in the presidential complex in Niamey, although there was no abnormal military deployment or sounds of gunfire in the area, and traffic was normal.
An MP with Bazoum’s PNDS party said: “I spoke to the president and to friends who are ministers (and) they are fine. “It’s a fit of temper by the Presidential Guard but talks are underway with the president”.
“The president is fine, he’s safe and sound”. “He and his family are at the residence.”
Bazoum, who was democratically elected in 2021, is a close ally of France.
The last coup in Niger occurred in February 2010, overthrowing then president Mamadou Tandja. There have d been an attempted putsch on March 31, 2021, two days before Bazoum’s inauguration.
Niger is one of the most unstable nations in the world, with four coups since independence from France in 1960 alongside other attempts on power.
