The Military Coup in Niger Republic

Abstract

Abstract On 26 July 2023, Mohamed Bazoum, President of Niger, was deposed by a military coup masterminded by members of his presidential guard. The military junta dissolved the government and on 28 July General Abdourahmane Tchiani, head of the presidential guard, was pronounced Niger’s military leader. Since the coup, there have been widespread responses and reactions (local and international) to the political developments in the Niger Republic. This article uses secondary sources of data to argue that the coup was not an expression of displeasure against democracy, neither did it show solidarity for an authoritarian system. It was a symptom of the failure of democracy, including the operations of its proponents (the West, and France in particular) in the Sahel. The widespread jubilation emanated from the hope that the military leadership would put in place measures to ameliorate the security and economic woes of the country. The study concludes that the security and socioeconomic improvement of the Niger Republic is not tied to either a democratic or autocratic system of government, as proclaimed in international politics by the West, especially the US and France, and Russia and China.