The Senate has approved President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s request to deploy Nigerian troops to the Republic of Benin as part of efforts to stabilise the country following last weekend’s attempted military takeover.
The approval was announced on Tuesday by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary after lawmakers considered the President’s request in the Committee of the Whole, in line with Section 5, Part II of the Constitution, according to Channels Television.
Senators voted unanimously in favour of the deployment, giving parliamentary backing to Nigeria’s participation in the regional intervention.
Akpabio described the move as both timely and necessary, noting that instability in any neighbouring state poses a direct threat to the entire region.
“An injury to one is an injury to all,” he said, adding that Nigeria is obligated under the ECOWAS framework to support its neighbours when constitutional order is threatened.
The Senate resolution is expected to be transmitted immediately to the President.
In his letter to the upper chamber, Tinubu said Nigeria bears a historic responsibility to support Benin under existing ECOWAS security arrangements. He stressed that the situation required “urgent external intervention” to halt further deterioration.
The attempted coup unfolded on Sunday when a faction of soldiers, identifying themselves as the “Military Committee for Refoundation,” appeared on national television to announce that President Patrice Talon had been removed from office. Loyalist forces, however, swiftly regained control.
Sources close to President Talon said Cotonou and the rest of the country were “completely secure” and that mop-up operations were ongoing.
In the aftermath of the failed takeover, ECOWAS activated its standby force.
“After consultations among members of the Mediation and Security Council, the Chair of ECOWAS Authority has ordered the deployment of elements of the ECOWAS Standby Force to the Republic of Benin with immediate effect,” the bloc said.
The regional force will comprise troops from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana. According to ECOWAS, the mission will support the government and loyal military forces to preserve constitutional order and safeguard the territorial integrity of Benin.
