By Olu Ibekwe
The Fourth
Ordinary Session of the Fifth Parliament of the Pan
African Parliament (PAP) which commenced on Monday May 24 was on
Tuesday June 1, 2021 abruptly suspended by the Clerk of the Parliament, Mr. Vipya Harawa.
A press statement
by Mr. Harawa explained that suspension
followed the “disagreements and disruptions that transpired during the
procession of the Plenary on 31 May and 01 June as the PAP was looking to elect the President
and Vice Presidents of its Bureau”.
Consequently,
the session adjourned sine die without
putting in place, a bureau to run the affairs of the parliament as well as leadership
of the regional caucuses and permanent committees of the parliament.
Some countries
including Ethiopia, Zambia and Algeria are expected to conclude parliamentary
elections and designate new members to the PAP
soon. Under the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament,
the Permanent Committee on Rules, Privileges and Discipline is supposed to
review the credentials of the newly elected parliamentarians. There is at
present, no such committee to perform this very important function.
It also means
that the new members cannot be sworn in without a presiding officer since the
oath taking under Rule 37 is part of the Order Paper which takes place in a
properly constituted session.
And if the
members of such new delegations cannot be vetted and sworn in, they may also
not participate in the election of the new Bureau which may affect the credibility
and fairness of such an election where otherwise eligible country delegations
are excluded.
Article 12(5) of the Protocol to the Constitutive Act of the
African Union relating to the Pan
African Parliament (PAP Protocol) stipulates
that the President and the Vice-Presidents shall be responsible for the management and administration
of the affairs and facilities of the Pan-African Parliament and its organs. In
the discharge of their duties, the Officers shall be assisted by the Clerk and
the two Deputy Clerks. So who now takes charge of the administration of the
affairs of PAP pending when
elections are conducted?
Fortunately, Article 13 of the PAP Protocol provides a solution to the current leadership vacuum. Under
Article 13, the Assembly of Heads of States and
Government of the AU or the Executive Council, through the Chairperson of the AU,
may request an Extraordinary session of the Parliament for the specific purpose
of conducting election to fill the vacant positions in the Bureau of the
Parliament as well as the leadership of the regional caucuses and permanent
committees.
It is expected that a decision to convene such an extraordinary
PAP session will be taken at the
forthcoming AU Summit which is also expected to resolve the contentious issue
of rotation of the presidency of the Parliament that led to the chaotic session
and the consequent suspension of plenary. The AU Office of Legal Counsel which
conducts elections for the Assembly and Executive Council, should also be
designated to conduct or supervise the PAP
Bureau election.
It will deteriorate the functionality of the PAP
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