Mali’s Constitutional Court validates CNT allowances

The Constitutional Court of Mali has validated the organic law establishing the allowances and benefits of the members of the National Transitional Council (CNT).
This decision, taken on June 27 and recently published, comes after the correction of the points considered non-compliant during an initial assessment in April 2024.
At the center of recent debates, the Organic Law that establishes the salaries and benefits of the members of the National Transitional Council (CNT) has been declared compliant by the Constitutional Court, after the correction of the points that were considered non-compliant the first time.
Although the law does not grant salaries to the members of the legislative body of the Malian transition, as provided for in the first version, the allowances for the National Councillors are maintained, with retroactive effect to all previous provisions.
Article 8 states that “this law, which shall come into force on the date of the establishment of the National Transitional Council, shall repeal all previous provisions to the contrary and shall be registered and published in the Official Journal.”
The law provides for various allowances for members of the CNT, namely: a representation allowance per month, a special allowance for members of the Bureau, a chauffeur allowance for members of the Bureau, a session allowance per session day, a restitution allowance per ordinary session, a housing allowance per month, a special allowance, a mount allowance, a telephone allowance, a responsibility allowance, a hardship allowance, and a fuel allowance.
Article 5 states that committee chairpersons also receive a responsibility allowance, while Article 6 states that committee chairpersons and vice-chairpersons also receive a hardship allowance.
Article 2 stipulates that the president of the CNT receives a monthly parliamentary allowance, calculated on the basis of the Hors échelle index, and also benefits from special funds.
However, these confirmations have not eased all the tensions. Several political actors and a large part of public opinion have expressed their dissatisfaction with what they consider to be “extravagant spending,” especially in a context of economic and social crisis.
Currently, the allowances of CNT members exceed 2 million FCFA per month. This is considered excessive by many critics, including former Prime Minister Moussa Mara, who has called for a 70% reduction in these benefits.
Critics point out that the country cannot afford such expenditures at a time when Malians are suffering the consequences of economic, social, security, political and energy crises.
According to some observers, these benefits show that CNT members are “more concerned with their own remuneration than with the urgent needs of the country.
Lawyer and researcher Daba Diawara strongly criticized the decision, claiming that “appealing to the Constitutional Court has become the surest way to give legal cover to the mistakes of the de facto authorities, who are leading the transition. Diawara claims that by validating these retroactive benefits, the Constitutional Court has made itself an accomplice to “laundering a criminal offense”, describing the decision as an attempt to “circumvent the law by giving retroactive effect to the proposed law”.
MD/ac/lb/GIK/APA