APA – N’Djamena (Chad) – A draft law on the powers and operation of the new electoral management body was approved in Chad on January 26.
A new body has been created in Chad to organise and monitor elections. It is known as the National Agency for the Management of Elections (ANGE) and replaces the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI), in accordance with the recommendations of the inclusive national dialogue.
The draft organic law on the powers and functioning of this electoral body was approved by the members of the transitional parliament on January 26. In a decree signed on January 29, head of state, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, promulgated the law, thus formalising the creation of this body.
Unlike the CENI, ANGE will be a permanent institution, the Secretary General of the Government, Dr. Ramatou Mahamat Houtoin, told the National Assembly. It will be composed of fifteen members chosen from among leading personalities according to strict criteria of competence, impartiality and independence. The members will be appointed for a seven-year term, renewable once, and will take an oath before taking office to guarantee their security of tenure.
Chad is preparing to hold legislative elections by October 2024. These will mark the transition that began in April 2021 with the death of President Idriss Déby Itno during an army counteroffensive in the north against rebels of the Chad Alternative and Concord Front. ANGE is responsible for organising post-transitional elections to ensure a return to constitutional order.
The president of the transition has been nominated by the Patriotic Salvation Movement to take part in the elections.
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