The Nigerians said the appeal became necessary so as to avoid being caught up in the line of fire and to avoid a repeat of what happened in Sudan where many Nigerian students were trapped when fighting broke out between the government forces and rebels.
They are also apprehensive of being subjected to xenophobic attacks by Nigeriens in retaliation of Nigeria’s role in rallying other ECOWAS member states to reject the unconstitutional change of government in which the coup plotters overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum.
ECOWAS had on Thursday resolved to deploy troops in Niger following the refusal of the military leaders to restore democracy despite the sanctions imposed on them and their collaborators by the sub-regional body.
After a meeting of the ECOWAS Heads of States and Government in Abuja, the President of ECOWAS, Omar Touray, said the bloc had directed the deployment of a “standby force” to restore democracy in Niger after the coup.
But Touray gave no details about the make-up, location and proposed date for the deployment of the military intervention force.
Reading the resolutions of the ECOWAS on the military junta in Niger at the end of the commission’s extraordinary summit, Touray also called on the African Union, partner countries and institutions to support the decision taken by the sub-regional body.
The body said all efforts made to hold dialogues with the military junta had been defiantly rejected by the coup leaders as it condemned the continuous detention of Bazoum and his family members.
Associated Press had quoted a Western military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the issue, said representatives of the junta told the US Under Secretary of State, Victoria Nuland, of the threat to Bazoum during her visit to the country on Monday.
According to AP, a US official confirmed the account, also speaking on condition of anonymity, because they were not authorised to speak to the media.
Bazoum, who was deposed on July 26, is being held hostage at his residence.
The stand-off between ECOWAS and Nigerien coup plotters has plunged Nigerians in the francophone nation into fear over a possible clampdown on them by their hosts.
Some of the Nigerians resident in Niger said the Nigeriens sympathetic to the junta had started reprimanding them for President Bola Tinubu’s support for ECOWAS directive that its forces be on standby to invade the country, rout the coup plotters and re-enthrone Bazoum.
Maina Bukar, who fled to Damasak, Borno State, shortly before the closure of the borders, told Saturday PUNCH on the telephone, “They (Nigeriens) are also angry with us (Nigerians) for closing the borders because a large quantum of household provisions the citizens use flow there from Nigeria.
“A very close friend of mine at Diffa, who is deeply sympathetic to the coup plotters, was already keeping me at arm’s length. Nigerian communities there, especially refugees of the Boko Haram insurgency, are in palpable fear of possible hostilities from their hosts should ECOWAS unleash its forces against their country.”
Another Nigerian, Musa Ali, who also crossed the border to Damasak, Borno State, and whose many relatives are still refugees in Niger, said, “Our hosts, especially those sympathetic to the junta, have now begun to display hostility toward us.
“They are angry with Nigerians because of our country’s stance on war with their country as they see what is happening in Niger as purely an internal affair.
“Now, our relations there are in danger should the hostilities continue, and they dare not return home partly because the borders between the two countries have been closed and also because insurgents are still in control of our ancestral communities and still unleashing terror.
“Our relations now daily complain to us that life is becoming unbearable in Niger Republic and are appealing to the Federal Government to arrange their evacuation back to Nigeria before ECOWAS troops will move in.”
Some others told one of our correspondents on the telephone that the position of ECOWAS was already heightening tension among Nigerians resident in Niger Republic.
Mr Muhammed Afolabi, an artisan who has been working in Niger for over 10 years, appealed to the leadership of ECOWAS to put the interest of the masses at heart before thinking of going to war with the junta.
He said the decision to put troops on standby was already having effects on his work as most of his customers had started deserting him.
Afolabi stated, “The government should consider us in this issue; they should think of what will happen if these people take revenge on us and our businesses.
“We have been having a cordial relationship with them here but with this now, who knows what will happen to us and our businesses? All we want is for ECOWAS to take things easy. If it becomes inevitable that ECOWAS troops must confront the junta, the Nigerian government must make arrangements to safely evacuate us from Niger.”
Also speaking, Mr Yahaya Abdullahi, a lecturer in one of the universities in Niger Republic, said Nigerian students studying in the country should be put into consideration by ECOWAS.
He said the involvement of the military by ECOWAS would have a negative impact on the lives and studies of Nigerians studying in the country who might suffer discrimination.
Abdullahi, however, appealed to the Federal Government and ECOWAS to evaluate the situation before resorting to force in resolving the crisis.
