The former head of Senegalese diplomacy, Cheikh Tidiane Gadio, will lead the mediation of the International Organisation of the Francophonie (OIF) for the “restoration of democratic institutions in Mali.”
The OIF wants to be among the leading actors involved in the resolution of the Malian crisis. It has set its sights on the Senegalese Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2000 to 2009 to speak out on this issue.
Current Vice-President of the Senegalese National Assembly, Gadio “will lead in the coming days a high-level mission to Bamako,” OIF said Monday in a statement.
At the beginning of the political crisis, he accompanied his compatriot, President Macky Sall, during the visit of heads of state of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
This time he will be part of the OIF delegation which will also include Nadia El Yousfi, Member of the Brussels Parliament and the Parliament of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, member of the Bureau of the Parliamentary Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Francophonie (APF) and Moha Ouali Tagma, Ambassador of His Majesty the King of Morocco to the Federal Republic of Nigeria and ECOWAS in Abuja.
According to OIF, Cheikh Tidiane Gadio has a very rich diplomatic experience, having led numerous mediation and facilitation missions, notably for the African Union (AU), ECOWAS and the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC). He also chairs the Pan-African Institute for Peace-Security-Governance Strategy (IPS).
His appointment by the Secretary General, Louise Mushikiwabo, “falls within the framework of the resolution adopted on August 25 by the 111th extraordinary session of the Permanent Council of the Francophonie (CPF), to support the process of restoring democratic institutions in Mali and contribute to finding lasting and credible solutions to end the crisis, taking into consideration the expectations of the Malian people.”
“In close coordination with international partners, mainly ECOWAS and the African Union, the Special Envoy will be responsible for supporting the Secretary General of Francophonie in accompanying the civil transition process,” the statement noted.
In Mali, power has been in the hands of a military junta since August 18, which precipitated the fall of former president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita after several months of street protests.
ECOWAS has since taken severe sanctions, including an economic embargo against the country, in order to get the military of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People (CNSP) to quickly organise the civil transition of power.
The ultimatum set for the putschists expires tomorrow, September 21, the eve of the 60th anniversary of the country’s independence.
ODL/te/lb/abj/APA