1st October, 2021
Head of Mali’s junta Colonel Mamady Doumbouya’s swearing-in ceremony as president, was snubbed today by ambassadors and leaders of ECOWAS countries.
But the Hassane Barry, ambassador of Mali, where another junta has hijacked political power attended.
So were ambassadors of France and 19 other countries, according to Guineenews.org.
The Malian ambassador came alongside Colonel Malick Diaw, president of the National Transition Council (CNT) of Mali.
Diaw represented Malian military President Assimi Goita.
ECOWAS condemned the 5 September coup d’état led by Doumbouya and initially called for the release and reinstatement of President Alpha Conde.
The regional grouping later requested the junta to organise an election in six months.
But the recalcitrant junta said it was up to the people of Guinea to decide on the duration of the transition.
Up till now, the junta has yet to release Alpha Condé.
Doumbouya was sworn in by the head of the Supreme Court which combines the roles of the Constitutional Court, dissolved since September 5.
He was sworn in as President of the Transition, President of the Republic, Head of State and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
It was done in the presence of the presidents of the Court of Auditors, the HAC, the Grand Chancellor of the National Order of Merits and members of the CNRD.
The swearing-in ceremony was held at the Mohamed V Palace in the capital Conakry.
West and Central Africa has seen four coups since last year – political upheaval that has intensified concerns about a slide towards military rule in a resource-rich but poverty-stricken region.
Wearing military dress uniform, a red beret and wraparound sunglasses, Doumbouya held up a white-gloved hand as he took the oath of office.
“I fully appreciate the magnitude and immensity of the responsibilities entrusted to me,” he said in a speech afterwards.
He promised to oversee a transition that would include the drafting of a new constitution, fighting corruption, electoral reform and the organisation of free and transparent elections.
The junta has said its members will be barred from standing in the next elections, but has not made clear when these might take place, saying this will be decided by an 81-member Transitional National Council.