Accused of imposing unjust and inhumane sanctions on the brotherly people of Niger by closing its borders, Benin is defending itself.
A few days ago, on the Radio Cotonou platform, the Deputy Secretary-General and government spokesperson of Benin, Léandre Wilfried Houngbédji, defended the position of the Cotonou regime in the political crisis in Niger. According to the former journalist, Benin is not the initiator of sanctions against Niger.
According to his statements, “It is important to recall that Benin did not unilaterally make a decision against the junta in Niger. The decisions of ECOWAS are binding on us, and we apply them,” defended the government spokesperson of Benin.
It is, in fact, in compliance with ECOWAS sanctions that Benin closed its borders with Niger. Some have deemed this action inhumane, denouncing sanctions that are beyond the norm because they do not allow the shipment of food and medicine to the brotherly country.
In response to these comments, Wilfried Houngbédji states that Benin has allowed the UN to deploy a humanitarian corridor to deliver goods to Niger.
Despite the ECOWAS sanctions, Wilfried Houngbédji emphasizes, “I inform you that President Patrice TALON and his government have authorized the United Nations (UN) to deploy a humanitarian corridor to deliver goods to Niger. This means that there is still humanity at work,” he emphasized.
