Mr. Odein Ajumogobia
Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, has urged the United Nations to sanction the use of force to remove embattled President Laurent Gbagbo of Cote d’Ivoire over his refusal to quit power after his political rival Allasane Ouattara was accepted by the international community as the country’s president.
A presidential runoff done in November last year saw the country’s Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) announcing the results in favour of Ouattara who was subsequently accepted by the European Union, United Nations and Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS).
Ajumogobia as a guest columnist on today’s back page of THISDAY described the impasse as single handedly precipitated by Gbagbo and called on the UN to intervene by supporting ECOWAS in its decision to use force to oust the president.
“As the impasse deepens with each passing day and the direct threat to regional peace and security becomes more imminent, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) requires unequivocal international support through an appropriate United Nations Security Council resolution to sanction the use of force.” the minister wrote in his article titled “Towards an enduring peace in Cote d’Ivoire”.
He reasoned that the present scenario will “inevitably” be a precursor to anarchy and its attendant chaos, or a “full blown civil war with the attendant impunity, violence, inconceivable humanitarian challenges and unprecedented civilian casualties.”
The minister sees Gbagbo as determined to defy and treat the entire international community with absolute disdain and warned that he must not be allowed to tow this line in the interest of global peace and security and in order to preserve and deepened the growing democratic culture in Africa.
He said the crises stems from the conflict between advocates of Ivorian nationality by parental descent and champions of Ivorien nationality by place of birth.
“The proponents of the former currently led by Mr. Laurent Gbagbo, have strongly advocated that any Ivorien citizen seeking presidential election must have full-blooded Ivorien parents. They claim that the father of Alassane Ouattara who won the 28th November, 2010 run off election is a naturalized Ivorian of Burkinabe descent.” Adding that naturally. Ouattara asserts his ‘Ivorienesse’ in accordance with the Ivorien Constitution and the law and also served as Prime Minister of Cote d’Ivoire.
According to the top diplomat, the distinction between native and non-native Ivoriens however underscores the underlying issues of unity and integration in that country that it was hoped the elections would resolve.
On the immediate cause of the conflict, the minister wrote that a dispute over electoral results announced by the Independent Electoral Commis-sion and purportedly overturned by the country’s Constitutional Council was the factor.
“The Electoral Commission declared Mr. Alassane Ouattara the winner of the November 28, 2010 run off presidential elections, the results having been duly certified by the representative of the United Nations Secretary General in Cote d’Ivoire under the terms of express agreement of all stakeholders in the process, including the contestants in the Presidential election.” He wrote.
He described the election as the culmination of a long drawn out process midwifed and monitored by the UN,that was expected to unify and stabilize the country after years of internal strife.
In conclusion, Ajumogobia cautioned that Gbagbo’s preparedness to court a gradually emerging civil war is in itself alarming because of the foreseeable humanitarian crisis that will ensue and praised the leadership of President Goodluck Jonathan for taking a firm and principled stand against impunity in governance.