APA-Lomé (Togo) The consequence of the new law is that there will be no more presidential elections in Togo.
In Togo, the National Assembly adopted a new constitution on Monday evening, changing the current presidential system to a parliamentary one.
The Bill passed by 89 votes in favour, one against and one abstention, enshrines the West African country’s transition to a fifth republic as soon as it is promulgated. It was proposed by deputies of the Union for the Republic (UNIR), the party in power in a parliament where the opposition is very poorly represented following
its boycott of the last legislative elections in 2018.
From now on, the country’s president will not govern, but will have symbolic powers. Elected by parliament in congress for a single six-year term, he is the guarantor of national unity and the continuity of the state. Until now, the term of office of the Togolese head of state, elected by direct universal suffrage, was five years, renewable once.
The bill introduces a new post, “the President of the Council of Ministers.” Elected for a six-year term, the latter is the leader of the majority party in parliament and represents the country in the place of the president at official meetings. As head of government, the President of the Council of Ministers conducts the nation’s policy and appoints civil and military officials, although, despite his “full authority,” he may “be held accountable as
a result.”
The Togolese authorities have yet to specify the date on which the law will come into force, despite the fact that legislative elections are due to be held in less than a month’s time, on 20 April 2024 to be precise, in the same period as the regional elections, in which the opposition has announced its participation. However, the term of
office of the deputies expired at the end of 2023, adding to the numerous criticisms from the political class and civil society.
President Faure Gnassingbe came to power in Togo in 2005, succeeding his late father, Eyadema Gnassingbe, who ruled the country with an iron fist for almost 38 years.
For almost two decades, his power was constantly reinforced with the help of parliament. Already in 2019,
MPs revised the constitution to limit presidential terms to two, so that the counters for Faure Gnassingbe were reset to zero.
ODL/te/fss/as/APA