Jean Ping of Gabon is the current Chair of the African Union Commission. He has expressed the notion that Chad and Sudan will not go to war.
Originally uploaded by Pan-African News Wire File Photos
By Paul Arhewe, Online/Foreign Editor (With Agency Reports)
Nigerian Daily Independent
A day after Goodluck Jonathan took over the reins of power as Acting President of the country, the African Union on Thursday warned Nigeria military to respect the decision until the recovery of ailing President Umaru Yar’Adua.
In a statement, African Union Commission chairman, Jean Ping, commended the move to install Jonathan as Acting President for demonstrating “respect for the constitution, good governance, democracy and the rule of law”.
“In so doing, the government and people of Nigeria have, again, resolved a delicate and sensitive political situation within the constitutional and legal provisions available and without recourse to violence or unconstitutional means,” the statement added.
“The chairperson of the commission encourages all the stakeholders in Nigeria, including the military, to continue in their firm support for and practice of constitutionality.”
Nigeria’s cabinet had initially opposed the idea of the vice president being formally appointed as Acting President in the absence of Yar’Adua who has been undergoing treatment in a Saudi Arabian hospital for a heart condition since November.
But ministers rallied round Jonathan on Wednesday, the day after both houses of the National Assembly had voted to hand him the reins of power.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation and one of the world’s biggest oil exporters, has a long history of coups and military leadership, and only returned to civilian rule a little over a decade ago.
After his installation as Acting President, Jonathan commended the security services for “their loyalty and devotion to duty during this trying period”.
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