US embassy cable - 05ABUJA1862

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 001862 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/29/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, LI, NI, ECOWAS 
SUBJECT: NIGERIA:LIBERIA DEMARCHE DELIVERED TO ECOWAS 
 
REF: STATE 180464 
 
Classified By: Ambassador John Campbell for Reasons 1.4 (b) & (d). 
 
1. (C) Summary.  Despite sensitivities about the need in 
principle to support the legal structures of Liberia, the 
Executive Secretary of ECOWAS agreed with U.S. concerns about 
the Liberian Supreme Court rulings.  He said that the U.S. 
and ECOWAS share a common position on how to respond to those 
decisions and the necessity for Liberian elections to take 
place on schedule and according to accepted practices.  The 
legal department of ECOWAS has advised Chambas not to abide 
by the rulings, which, in its view, are not consistent with 
the court's mandate.  ECOWAS will issue a public statement to 
this effect on September 29, and hopes to have this position 
affirmed by the ECOWAS Heads of State on the 30th.  ECOWAS 
will authorize NEC to continue preparing for elections on 
October 11 and CPA Mediator Abubakar will arrive in Liberia 
on October 5 (or earlier if necessary) in anticipation of the 
election being held on schedule.  End Summary. 
 
2. (U)  The Ambassador delivered reftel points to Dr. 
Mohammed ibn Chambas, the Executive Secretary of ECOWAS on 
September 29.  Also present were General Cheick Oumar Diarra, 
the Deputy Executive Secretary for Political Affairs, 
Defense, and Security; PolMilOff; and an ECOWAS notetaker. 
The points were left with both Chambas and Diarra as a 
nonpaper. 
 
3. (C)  Chambas opened by saying he and ECOWAS are "very 
concerned" about the situation in Liberia.  Just before 
meeting the Ambassador, he had a meeting with CPA Mediator 
Abubakar.  Chambas wished "the court had been more 
responsible" with its verdict considering the "peculiar 
circumstances" of Liberia.  He said the ECOWAS legal 
department had reviewed the verdict and determined that it 
should not be allowed to stand as it undermines the CPA, from 
which the court derives its authority.  After reviewing 
reftel points, he said he was pleased to see that ECOWAS and 
the U.S. have "a common position."  Chambas added that the 
Chairman of the NTGL was in Abuja on September 27 to discuss 
the same issue with President Obasanjo. 
 
4. (C)  Chambas said that ECOWAS will issue a public 
statement on Septmeber 29 rejecting the Liberian Supreme 
Court rulings and calling for Liberian elections to be held 
as scheduled on October 11 (Note:  Post will fax the statment 
to AF/W once it is received.  End Note).  Chambas said the 
ECOWAS Heads of State meeting in Abuja on September 30 would 
be asked to endorse the statement ECOWAS will issue September 
29.  ECOWAS will authorize NEC to continue their preparations 
for an October 11 election.  Abubakar is currently scheduled 
to arrive in Liberia on October 5, though if the situation 
warrants, he could arrive as early as October 3. 
 
5. (C)  Chambas was pleased to hear that U.S. Ambassadors to 
ECOWAS member states were delivering the same message in 
their capitals.  He felt that it would be helpful to ECOWAS 
to have all of the Heads of State coming into Friday's Summit 
"with the U.S. position in their heads."  Though the Summit 
will be a closed-door event, Chambas has agreed to allow 
PolMilOff to remain on the margins of the event. 
 
6. (C)  Comment.  Chambas is firmly committed to holding 
elections on schedule, in accordance with the CPA, and sees 
this as a high priority.  Chambas has, in fact, been prepared 
for some sort of stalling tactic by the NTGL for some time, 
and has consistently said that elections must occur on 
schedule.  End comment. 
 
 
 
CAMPBELL