West African leaders will travel to Gambia on Tuesday as part of measures to prevail on President Yahya Jammeh to accept defeat in the presidential election and ensure peaceful transition of power to the President-elect, Adama Barrow.
President Muhhamadu Buhari of Nigeria , the Sierra Leonean President, Ernest Koroma, John Mahama of Ghana, who also recently lost in the presidential election and the Chairman, Economic Community of West African States, are part of the delegation that will be led to Gambia by the Liberian President, Ellen Sirleaf.
According to Reuters, the show of unity by regional leaders came as diplomats said the United Nations Security Council would meet behind closed doors later to discuss Jammeh’s refusal to hand over power.
“Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will travel to Gambia on Tuesday (today) as part of a high-level delegation trying to get Yahya Jammeh to accept his defeat in this month’s election,” Reuters quoted a Nigerian government source as saying.
“These heads of state will ask him to leave power,” the Senegalese foreign minister said in a statement, calling the trip “a last chance mission for Jammeh.”
Jammeh had conceded defeat shortly after Barrow was declared winner of the December 1 presidential election only for him to make a U-turn on Friday, insisting to hold onto power.
