ECOWAS leaders concerned with post-electoral crisis in Benin
Cotonou, Benin (PANA) - The heads of state of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have expressed concern over the electoral crisis in Benin, said a statement issued here Tuesday following their 55th Conference that ended Saturday in Abuja.
“The Conference is concerned by the post-electoral crisis that led to some violence in Benin because of the absence of consensus on the implementation of the electoral reforms,” said the statement sent to PANA.
The regional institution “reaffirms its strong condemnation of the acts of electoral violence and reaffirms that all divergences linked to elections should be sorted out through legal and peaceful means,” said the statement.
The conference, which called on the Commission to undertake negotiations with Benin in that respect, hailed the appeal launched by the Beninese president to the new parliament for the revision of the political charter and electoral code.
This, according to the regional institution, “will establish an environment appropriate for dialogue with the opposition”.
The report said “the political situation in the country was tense in March and April 2019 following the electoral boycott by some opposition party candidates in the 28 April’s parliamentary elections, this year, that did not allow Parliament “to reach consensus on the implementation of electoral reforms”.
The document stated: “… the Council takes note of the rising concerns expressed with regard to the post-electoral crisis that led to several acts of violence in the country and said that on 2 May 2019, the ECOWAS Commission and the UN Office for West Africa and Sahel (UNOWAS) issued a joint statement in which they expressed deep concern with the evolution of the post-electoral crisis and called all Beninese actors to make all arrangements so that any divergence linked to elections is sorted out collectively, inclusively, legally and peacefully in bid to promote their reconciliation and maintain national and regional stability”.
In that respect, the council recommended the Beninese authorities and actors must “see to it that all grievances linked to elections are treated in an inclusive, legal and peaceful way to promote reconciliation between all political actors and see to the maintaining of national and regional stability, strengthen the enviable democratic culture that makes the reputation of the country by taking up the current political challenges”.
It recommended that the ECOWAS Commission must “carry on the talks with the concerned Beninese actors and back the efforts made to find peaceful solutions to the current situation, intensify its efforts to better evaluate the post-electoral situation and support reconciliation and the consolidation of peace and deploy, according to needs and in collaboration with AU and UNOWAS a high level political mission to facilitate inclusive dialogue between the government and the opposition”.
-0- PANA IT/IS/MSA/RA 2Jul2019
