“I Feel More Pain Over Guinea-Bissau Turmoil Than Losing in 2015” — Jonathan

Goodluck Jonathan says the political upheaval that unfolded during the recent power grab in Guinea-Bissau struck him far more deeply than the moment he conceded the 2015 presidential election. Speaking in a video interview obtained by Saturday PUNCH, he said the experience was personally painful because of the years he has devoted to helping stabilise the West African country.

Jonathan had travelled to Bissau as part of the West African Elders Forum to observe both the presidential and parliamentary elections. Observer teams from ECOWAS, the African Union and other international bodies were still monitoring the process when soldiers moved in and announced they had taken control. The sudden development left Jonathan and his delegation stranded, triggering concern for their safety and prompting diplomatic efforts to evacuate them.

He said the incident unsettled him in a way he did not expect, especially given his long involvement in resolving Guinea-Bissau’s recurrent crises. Jonathan recalled working closely with regional leaders from as far back as 2011 to help the country organise credible elections following repeated instability. Because of that history, he said, watching another breakdown of democratic order felt deeply personal.

Jonathan also questioned the nature of the takeover, calling it unlike any coup he had witnessed or studied. He said it was strange that President Umaro Embaló publicly announced his own “arrest” while freely speaking to international media on his phone. According to him, reports from observer missions suggested that voting had been peaceful, making Embaló’s announcement of a coup — delivered while results were still being collated — even more puzzling.

He argued that the situation did not resemble a real coup and described it as “ceremonial,” driven largely by the president’s own declarations before the military addressed the nation. Jonathan stressed that no genuine coup unfolds with the leader at the centre of its announcement, insisting that the circumstances defied logic and global precedent.

He urged regional bodies to avoid military confrontation and instead release the full election results to restore transparency. Jonathan also called for the immediate release of opposition figure Fernando Dias, who is being held by the military, insisting that Dias had committed no offence.

Recalling his evacuation, Jonathan explained that Côte d’Ivoire’s aircraft eventually transported him and his team out of Bissau. Both Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire had prepared evacuation flights, but the Ivorian government secured landing clearance first. He noted that Côte d’Ivoire’s proximity to Guinea-Bissau and its historic ties with other lusophone and francophone states helped speed up the approval. By the time Nigeria received its own clearance, the Ivorian aircraft was already close, prompting his team to advise Abuja not to dispatch a second plane.

Jonathan added that this was why he returned to Nigeria aboard the Ivorian aircraft seen in photographs, bringing an end to what he described as one of the most unsettling episodes in his diplomatic work.