Benin: ECOWAS, The Enemy Within.

The events that unfolded in Benin on December 7, 2025, have once again exposed where the loyalties of ECOWAS lie.

The lightning speed at which it mobilised its military might to save President Patrice Talon proved that it actually has such capacity, but it functions only when certain interests want it to.

The self-proclaimed regional defender seems to find superhuman strength whenever a sitting president's chair is at risk. Yet, the same force becomes conspicuously absent or ineffective when jihadists and bandits run amok in its member states.

The reason is painfully simple. You have to follow the money. When the European Union and Germany pay for the entire budget for ECOWAS Peace, Security and Governance programmes, expectations should not be far from the present realities.