APA-Cotonou (Benin) At a meeting on December 22 between the Minister of Justice and the heads of the institutions, Louis Vlavonou, President of the Beninese Parliament, proposed a “total overhaul of the entire system.” He was commenting on the revision of the Fundamental Law.
Faced with the outcry provoked by his statements on the Constitution, the President of Benin’s National Assembly explained his position. At a press conference on Thursday, his spokesman Vitali Boton explained that Louis Vlavonou’s remarks were to be seen in the context of an “unconventional discussion.” “No one can doubt, given the experience of the President of the National Assembly, that he knows how to distinguish a constituent assembly from a consultation framework, even one involving the presidents of the Republic’s institutions,” Mr. Boton said.
On December 22, 2023, during a meeting between Justice Minister Yvon Détchénou and the presidents of institutions, Louis Vlavonou declared that “we who are here represent the entire nation. These are the institutions of the Republic, and we are like a constituent assembly, because what is discussed here and what is done here is beyond our poor selves. It’s the total overhaul of the entire system that’s at stake.”
At a press conference on January 03 in Cotonou, the opposition party ‘Les Democrates’ called for the resignation of the President of the National Assembly, accusing him of perjury. “For the sake of his own dignity in a country that respects itself and its own values, Mr. Louis Vlavonou should purely and simply resign from the presidency of our National Assembly, or he should be dismissed by his peers for having exceeded his competence and for having received no mandate to go and make such a declaration,” said Guy Mitopke, spokesman for the party of former president Boni Yayi. He added that ‘Les Democrates’ would not allow “an opportunistic revision of the Beninese constitution” to pass.
Already on January 1, former president Boni Yayi, leader of the party, firmly warned against any plans for a “third or disguised third mandate.”
President Patrice Talon, who is due to complete his second five-year term in 2026, has nevertheless pledged to respect the constitution so as not to enter the race for the supreme magistracy a third time.
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