Communiqué Posté le 08:53 03-01-2023, modifié le 08:53 03-01-2023 par Tournons la Page
As part of the campaign for term limits coordinated by Tournons La Page and in view of the alarming political situation in West Africa, the artists of the Collective of Pan-African Artists (CAP) have written a letter addressed to the current President of ECOWAS, also sent to twelve Heads of State in the zone, to call for a reform on term limits.
The political situation in West Africa continues to deteriorate and we are witnessing acts and speeches that run counter to democratic principles and good governance. The latest demonstration is the abortive attempt in June 2022 by ECOWAS to limit terms of office to two. Three states have expressed a reservation in the name of state sovereignty: Ivory Coast, Senegal and Togo for the second time. This signal is all the more worrying for Senegal, where President Macky Sall still leaves the possibility of a third mandate in doubt. He recently told the New York Times: "It is clear that today there is no legal debate [over whether or not he can run again]. Now, whether I’m going to be a candidate or not, it’s my decision. » confirming the deterioration of respect for the rule of law in West Africa.
For this reason, the CAP addressed this letter to the President of ECOWAS, which was also sent to 12 Heads of State in the zone, who are in favour of the principle of limitation that consolidates the rule of law.
In this letter, the CAP calls on the President to take steps to ratify the limitation of presidential terms at the regional level. To this end, the 11 artists, through Tournons La Page and the Front Citoyen - Togo Debout, are calling for an amendment to the ECOWAS additional protocol A/SP1/12/01.
Tournons La Page and the CAP jointly call on ECOWAS Member States that have validated the draft reform of term limits to make this amendment permanent in order to consolidate the rule of law in the sub-region, which is suffering from the desire of some Heads of State to remain in power forever and to flout democratic principles.
