President Bola Tinubu last week handed over the affairs of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, to his successor, President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone, with obvious sigh of relief after his two-year tenure.

Under him, the Community split in two, with Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger moving away to form the Alliance of Sahel States, AES, in response to the red-hot hostility beamed on them by the rest of the 13-member community as a result of military takeovers. Tinubu also enjoyed the privilege of leading the celebration of ECOWAS’ Golden Jubilee in Lagos, its birthplace in 1975.

Taking stock of Tinubu’s time as ECOWAS Chairman, it can be said that its greatest success also revolved around its greatest failure.

Shortly after his appointment, ECOWAS came under intense pressures from offshore powers, notably France and Joe Biden-led United States of America, for Tinubu to lead ECOWAS in a military campaign to “flush out” the military government of Niger’s General Omar Tchiani, which had just toppled the “democratically elected” government of President Mohamed Bazoum.

ECOWAS leaders were jittery over the series of military coups that had claimed Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad, Sudan and Gabon, setting the perceived trend of return of military rule in the wider region. Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger quickly rallied to engage the perceived invaders. Fortunately, Tinubu and his cohorts listened to voices of reason, rescinded and settled for dialogue. By then, the “dissident” states had formed the AES and moved on.

ECOWAS committed a grave blunder by daring to contemplate military action against a bloc that constituted almost half of the region’s landmass with vast experiences in tackling military threats. If Nigeria had plunged into that quixotic venture as ECOWAS leader, it could have spelt grave consequences for its own national cohesion, given its own intractable security challenges.

ECOWAS also nearly violated its own charter of non-military interference in the domestic affairs of member-states. By pulling out of war just in time, ECOWAS saved face and the door for the fraternal resolution of the dispute remained open. We hope every side has learnt its lesson.

We welcome President Maada Bio into the saddle and urge him to make reconciliation with the AES, restoring security in the entire zone and activating the ECOWAS common currency his priorities. ECOWAS must emulate the European Union, EU’s, economic and security templates if it is to remain relevant.

No matter how difficult it seems, ECOWAS must remain locked in dialogue with the AES for reunification. Without this, there will never be peace in the region. We need an effective common front to defeat jihadist insecurity, our common enemy. ECOWAS leaders must wean themselves from their former colonial masters and offshore powers and pursue self-reliance.

The Community must grow together.