Politician Fernando Dias, who claims to have won the presidential election in Guinea-Bissau on November 23, 2025, fled to Nigeria after the overthrow of Umaro Sissoco Embaló.
The Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that the country welcomed Dias after President Bola Tinubu agreed to provide him with security because it appeared that his life was in danger.
The Nigerian government has asked the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to send troops to Abuja to continue to provide security for Dias.
Umaro, who is in the Republic of Congo, claimed that he won the election with 65% of the vote, but Dias also said that when the coup d’état took place on November 26, he was on his way to victory.
A coalition of political groups supporting Dias condemned the military coup, saying it was orchestrated by Umaro to thwart the announcement of the results of the November 27 election, which he considered a defeat.
Guinea-Bissau’s interim president, Gen. Horta N’Tam, explained that the military took power to thwart an illegal coup plot by drug traffickers.
On 1 December 2025, ECOWAS sent a delegation to Guinea-Bissau led by its Director-General and President of Sierra Leone, Julius Maada Bio, to negotiate with the military coup plotters.
President Bio asked Gen N’Tam and his colleagues to allow the Electoral Commission to declare the results of the elections, so that the winner could take office. However, the Commission explained that this was not possible because the soldiers had stolen the ballot boxes.
