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Nigeria’s former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday met behind closed-door with President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja.

Details of the meeting were unknown, but it might not be unconnected with the crisis in Mali.

Jonathan is leading team of ECOWAS Envoy to try to broker peace in Mali over a disputed election.

The former president, in July, after leading ECOWAS team to Mali, recommended formation of a government of national unity with members drawn from different interest groups in the country, including the ruling coalition, the opposition parties and the civil society.

The Jonathan’s team also recommended the establishment of a technical committee to be set up by ECOWAS to monitor the implementation of the proposed measures which also include the reconstitution of the dissolved
constitutional court as well as the resolution of the dispute over 31 legislative seats recently set aside by the defunct constitutional court.

The mission’s communique issued at a press conference in Bamako stated: “As a matter of urgency, there is the need to put in place a government of national unity, based on consensus and taking into account the recommendations of the Inclusive National Dialogue, the implementation of the Mali Peace and Reconciliation Agreement resulting from the Algiers process.”

According to the document, the proposed government will have 50 percent of its members drawn from the ruling coalition while the opposition and civil society groups will produce 30 percent and 20 percent of its membership, respectively.

Jonathan had visited Buhari on his first visit to Mali to give feedback, which led to Buhari and other ECOWAS leaders travelling to Mali for a meeting.

Last week, the former President was also in Mali to continue his mission.

His visit to Buhari on Tuesday is seen as another avenue to give feedback on what transpired in Mali and the way forward.