Meeting in extraordinary session on January 13, 2024, the deputies examined and unanimously adopted the bill modifying the law relating to the electoral code as well as the draft organic law modifying the organic law fixing the number of deputies in the National Assembly , the eligibility conditions, the incompatibilities regime and the conditions under which vacant seats are filled. The vote on the texts was justified by the leaders of the different parliamentary groups.
The bill amending law no. 2021-019 of October 11, 2021 established the coupling of elections. The text stipulates that the electorate may be convened for one or more ballot(s). Article 103 indicates that upon receipt of the minutes from the CELI and CEAI, the CENI carries out the general census of votes at the national level CELI by CELI, and CEAI by CEAI and proceeds to the proclamation of the provisional results at the national level , at the latest within six (6) days following the ballot(s). 45 days at the latest before the date of the ballot(s), the candidate placed at the head of the list files with the CENI a signed declaration of candidacy including “the information relating to him”. 48 hours following acceptance of the application, the candidate at the top of the list pays to the public treasury, for each of the candidates on the list, a security, the amount of which is fixed by decree in the council of ministers by joint proposal from the CENI and of the minister responsible for territorial administration.
With regard to organic law No. 2012-013 of July 6, 2012 setting the number of deputies in the National Assembly, the conditions of eligibility, the regime of incompatibilities and the conditions under which vacant seats are filled, modified by organic law no. 2013-009 of April 11, 2013, it increases the number of deputies from 91 to 113. This is justified, we inform, by the significant increase in the population, the geographical location of certain electoral districts and the need to break up electoral districts encompassing two prefectures. “These modifications make it possible to harmonize the organizational arrangements for one or more elections and strengthen the representativeness of our populations within the National Assembly. », Commented the UFC parliamentary group.
While welcoming the reforms, the NET-PDP parliamentary group asked the government to act diligently by quickly issuing the decree which will determine the distribution of the number of deputies by electoral constituency in order to allow political actors to sharpen their weapons more easily. to face the upcoming elections with complete peace of mind.
For the UNIR parliamentary majority, the choice of a coupled election is judicious and economical for the country. “The changes seem very relevant, realistic and justified to me,” commented Atcholi Aklesso, president of the UNIR parliamentary group.
Indeed, the main objective of these modifications, underlined the President of the National Assembly, Yawa Tsègan, is to adapt “our legislation to demographic developments as well as to geographical constraints with a view to achieving concerted solutions for the peaceful organization of legislative and regional elections”.
Atha ASSAN