ABUJA (AFP) – An emergency summit of west African leaders Tuesday failed to appoint a president for West Africa’s economic community Commission to replace the incumbent whose tenure officially expired last year, a senior official said.

The summit agreed on all others key posts in the Commission recommended by its ad-hoc committeee but could not reach an accord on the appointment of a new president of the Commission, Victor Gbeho, the incumbent, told reporters.

“They agreed on all except the position of president of the ECOWAS commission because there was difficulty in agreeing as to whether to give it to the Republic of Benin or Burkina Faso,” said Gbeho.

The four-year tenure of Gbeho, a Ghanaian, and most of his lieutenants in the Commission ended in December, officials said.

Eight presidents, including the Liberian head of state, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who is to face a November 8 run-off election, and two vice presidents, attended the one-day meeting.

The Liberian leader told reporters that she was hurriedly heading back home after the summit to start campaigning for the re-run.

Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore was absent at the meeting.

The chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, will consult with the presidents of Benin and Burkina Faso “with a view to breaking the logjam that has developed”, Gbeho said.

“Before a final decision is made on that, the chairman wants to satisfy himself that he has consulted the two of them totally before announcing what will be the result,” he added.

The key positions in the Commission are allocated to countries on rotational basis.

The summit allocated the position of vice president of the Commission to Liberia and posts of commissioners to some other countries.

ECOWAS was created in 1975 to promote the economic integration of member states.