LAGOS, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has announced the suspension of Niger for its defiance of the ban on Tuesday's legislative elections.

The holding of Tuesday's elections in that country was in total disregard of the authority of ECOWAS, the News Agency of Nigeria said on Wednesday, citing a statement by the regional grouping.

At the weekend, the 16-member bloc banned Niger from holding the elections amid the country's standoff over a referendum in August, which allows President Mamadou Tandja to run for another term of office when his current tenure expires in December.

"It is a clear move by the authorities in Niger to further entrench the constitutional illegality currently prevailing in the country," said Olusegun Adeniyi, special adviser to Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua, who is also ECOWAS chairman.

"The Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority and President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Umaru Yar'Adua, regrets the failure of the authorities in the Republic of Niger to heed the decision of the extra-ordinary summit held on Oct.17, 2009, and postpone the legislative elections to allow for more dialogue," the statement added.

"The holding of the elections today in total disregard of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government is a clear move by the authorities in Niger to further entrench the constitutional illegality currently prevailing in the country," the statement said.

"As it remains committed to consolidating the culture of democracy, respect for constitutional legality and the rule of law that it has championed for the past two decades, ECOWAS will not recognize the outcome of today's elections in Niger," Adeniyi said in the statement.

"The violation of the 1999 Constitution by the authorities in Niger, the intolerance of divergent opinions, and the muzzling of the opposition political parties are serious breaches of the ECOWAS Protocol A/SP1/12/01 on Democracy and Good Governance," said the statement.

"The breaches also constitute sufficient grounds for the imposition of sanctions on Niger in accordance with Article 45 of the said Protocol," it said.

"The Republic of Niger is therefore suspended from ECOWAS until constitutional legality is reinstated," it declared.

The regional body said in the effort to continue to constructively engage the principal stakeholders in the Nigerien polity, ECOWAS would convene a consultative meeting of the major Nigerien political actors in Abuja on Oct. 30.

The meeting will be under the chairmanship of the ECOWAS mediator for Niger, Abdulsalami Abubakar, the statement said.