General Horta N’Tam has been installed as Guinea-Bissau’s transitional president, a day after a swift military takeover plunged the country into renewed political instability. The army administered the oath of office during a brief ceremony at its headquarters on Thursday, announcing that N’Tam would lead a one-year transition.
N’Tam, formerly head of the presidential guard, stood unsmiling as senior officers surrounded him during the ceremony — a stark image reflecting the tension that has gripped the capital since Wednesday’s events.
Civil society organisations have accused outgoing President Umaro Sissoco Embaló of staging what they described as a “simulated coup” with military support in an attempt to stop the release of presidential election results expected on Thursday, especially if he had lost. His main challenger, Fernando Dias, has echoed the allegation. Embaló has not issued a public response.
Before the takeover, soldiers had already halted the electoral process and blocked the announcement of results from Sunday’s vote. Government sources told AFP that Embaló is being held at army staff headquarters but is “well-treated.”
The African Union condemned the developments. AU Chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf called for the “immediate and unconditional release” of Embaló and other detained officials, urging respect for constitutional order and the electoral process.
Gunfire rang out in Bissau on Wednesday as military officers declared they had seized control. Later on state television, they claimed they acted to prevent a plot involving unnamed politicians backed by a “well-known drug baron.” Borders were shut and a night-time curfew imposed.
Both Embaló and Dias had claimed victory in the yet-to-be-announced election results. Dias had received support from former Prime Minister Domingos Simões Pereira, who was barred from contesting. Government sources later confirmed that Dias, Pereira, Interior Minister Botché Candé, army chief Gen Biague Na Ntan and deputy Gen Mamadou Touré had also been detained.
International observers voiced strong concern. In a joint statement, leaders of the African Union and ECOWAS election missions said they were “deeply concerned,” noting that the polls had been “orderly and peaceful,” with both leading candidates previously pledging to accept the results.
Portugal, Guinea-Bissau’s former colonial ruler, called for an immediate return to constitutional governance and urged all sides to exercise restraint. By Thursday, reports indicated that the country’s borders had been reopened.
The crisis adds to Guinea-Bissau’s long record of instability, with at least nine coups or attempted coups since independence in 1974. Embaló, 53, had sought to become the first president in three decades to secure a second consecutive term, despite earlier suggesting he would not run again. His legitimacy had already been questioned by opposition figures who maintained his term ended in February 2025.
Guinea-Bissau, home to just over two million people, remains one of the world’s poorest countries. Its poorly monitored coastline has long made it a major transit point for cocaine smuggled from Latin America to Europe, earning it the United Nations’ label of a “narco-state.”
