Adama Ancumba Djata | African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape verde (PAIGC, Guinea-Bissau)

Speech on the Political Situation in Guinea-Bissau
Your Excellencies,
Distinguished Representatives of the International Community,
Esteemed Delegates,
It is with a sense of patriotic responsibility and a spirit of peace that the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) addresses this august assembly to present the serious political and institutional crisis currently plaguing the Republic of Guinea-Bissau.
Since the legislative elections of June 2023, the PAI–Terra Ranka coalition, led by the PAIGC, has achieved a clear and unequivocal victory at the polls, winning an absolute majority in the National People’s Assembly (ANP), in accordance with the principles of democratic legality and respect for popular sovereignty.
However, in flagrant violation of the constitutional order and the mandate conferred by the Guinean people, the President of the Republic, General Umaro Sissoco Embaló, has chosen a path of authoritarianism, illegally dissolving Parliament and establishing a regime of personal and autocratic governance.

Among the most serious violations of the Constitution and the democratic rule of law are:

• The unconstitutional dismissal of the President of the National People’s Assembly, without any legal basis, an act that constitutes direct and inadmissible interference by the Head of State in the legislative power;
• The irregular dissolution of the National People’s Assembly, without any valid legal justification;
• The appointment of governments without parliamentary legitimacy;
• The arbitrary exclusion of the PAIGC and its President, Domingos Simões Pereira, from the presidential elections scheduled for November 2025;
• The expulsion of international media outlets (RTP, RDP, Agência Lusa) as well as the internal censorship imposed on independent radio stations and journalists;
• The systematic judicial persecution and intimidation of political leaders and opposition activists;
• The attempt to unconstitutionally extend the presidential term, based on distorted interpretations of judicial decisions.
  These actions constitute a deliberate strategy to erode democratic institutions, weaken Parliament, silence civil society, and consolidate personal power outside the law.

Ladies and gentlemen,
Democracy in Guinea-Bissau is under a real threat. The freedom of our people, won with courage, sacrifice, and blood, is now being undermined by a regime that refuses to accept the limits imposed by the Constitution, democratic oversight, and the alternation of power.
The PAIGC, the founding party of the nation and heir to the national liberation struggle led by Amílcar Cabral, reaffirms in this international forum its unwavering commitment to peace, constitutional legality, justice, and human rights.
We reject any form of violence or institutional breakdown. We will continue our struggle through peaceful and democratic means, certain that no power can resist the will of the people forever.
Guinea-Bissau is not the property of any one man. It is the collective heritage of its people—a people who knew how to fight for freedom and who will also know how to defend it.

We therefore urgently appeal for:

• The active solidarity of the international community;
• The constant vigilance of multilateral and regional organisations.