Earlier today, the Guinea-Bissau military took over the country just one day before presidential election results were scheduled to be announced. They have arrested several key people, including the current president, Umaro Sissoco Embalo, and former Prime Minister Domingos Simões Pereira. The military also attempted to arrest Embalo’s top opponent in the presidential race, Fernando Dias da Costa, but he narrowly escaped and is now in hiding.
The military went on state TV to say that they acted because of what they claimed was a secret plan by an unidentified group of politicians and drug traffickers who were about to orchestrate an armed takeover and interfere with the election results. But many people in Guinea-Bissau are suspicious of that claim.
When news of the military activity first hit around 10 a.m. earlier today, teachers and students at the WAVS flagship campus in Bissau, the capital, were in the middle of classes.
“Students, teachers and employees experienced a moment of panic and distress, as they live in different neighborhoods of Bissau, and their families also study and work in different neighborhoods,” said Julio Gomes, the operations manager at the WAVS campus. “When something of this nature happens, transportation becomes congested or prohibited, thus making their mobility impossible.”
The school suspended classes for the day and canceled classes for tomorrow. Julio said that his team worked together to make sure people who lived far away from the school could make it home safely.
The international community has already made statements denouncing the military takeover, but it’s unclear if they’ll take any concrete action, since there have already been four other countries in West Africa in recent years where the military has staged a coup and now runs those countries, and nothing has been done about it.
Guinea-Bissau has a long history of the military intervening.
“The Guinean population is already terrified by situations of this nature, as this is not the first time over the years,” Julio said. “This situation has greatly affected the daily lives of all Guineans and citizens.”
We ask for your prayers for our teachers and students, and for peace and stability in Guinea-Bissau.
