The goal of the Annan led mediation is to initiate a conversation between
1 cessation of ethnic violence restore fundamental rights and freedoms
2. humanitarian response and resettlement of internally displaced communities
3. mobilize political cooperation to achieve a national consensus on constitutional and institutional reform
4. constitute a process for truth, justice and inter-ethnic reconciliation
In the short-term, power sharing on an interim basis provides the most promising platform for mobilizing political and civic society support for constitutional and institutional reform.
Political power sharing must:
1. be based on clear aims and principles
a. time bound; interim
b. purely for political and legislative cooperation and not partisan political competition
c. Set the size and composition of interim cabinet to demonstrate commitment to equity and merit. Not more than 24 ministers should be named
2. enshrine the spirit and letter of the transition/interim government in a constitutional amendment
3. be enforceable and supervised by parliament
4. define and appropriate responsibility and the spirit of the interim coalition government
5. spell the legislative agenda and timetable for parliament to debate and enact legal, institutional and constitutional reform
Agenda for constitutional legal and institutional reform
- Electoral Commission reform
- Constitutional offices of the Chairman of the Electoral Commission
i. Fixed and secure of tenure for commissioners
ii. The chief executive (president or prime minister) to propose three names for Electoral Commission Chairman and Commissioners
iii. Appropriate parliamentary committee to conduct public hearings on the qualification, integrity and suitability of the nominees
- Role of electoral commission be expanded to include managing of primaries for civic, parliamentary and presidential primaries for political parties
- Parliamentary parties
- Stipulate number of political parties
i. Stipulate criteria for membership/leadership
ii. Publication of party constitutions/manifestos
1. adherence to internal democracy
2. regular elections and annual party conventions, financial audit
iii. rules for party funding and finances/assets/liabilities
iv. party secretariat
v. must have an presence in every district
- Devolution of power to local governments
- District assembly
i. Chief executive (direct election)
ii. Legislative mandate
iii. Budgets
iv. Revenue
v. District education boards
- Direct election of city mayors
i. Legislative mandate for city governments
ii. Budgetary autonomy and control for city governments
iii. Fund raising/direct foreign investment
iv. Taxes (VAT & income tax, MV authority)
v. Metropolitan police
vi. Education boards
vii. Housing board
viii. Metropolitan transport authority
ix. Recreation and environmental protection agency
- Parliamentary reform
- Autonomy of parliament
i. Business calendar
ii. No member of parliament shall, during the time for which he/she is elected, be appointed to any civil office
iii. MPs remuneration shall neither be increased nor diminished during the time in which they are in office
iv. Time bound legislative programme during each session
v. Bills must sent to the president must be returned within 10 days
vi. Power to impeach the President, Vice President and members of the cabinets
vii. Declaration of assets and liabilities at the start and end of MPs term
- The executive
- Conduct of presidential election
- Term of office
- Must garner 51% of votes cast
- Presidential running mate must be declared during the electioneering
- President elect and Inauguration (within 30-60 days)
- Petitions on the presidential vote must be filed, heard and determined within 21 days of the announcement of the winner
- Cabinet appointed from outside parliament
- Cabinet must be approved by parliament
i. Key cabinet positions must receive parliamentary approval
ii. finance, security, foreign affairs, attorney general
- Size and composition of the cabinet (stipulate number and size of government)
- The President, Vice President and the members of cabinet shall be removed from office, on impeachment for and conviction of treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanours
- Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of parliament.
- Declaration of assets and liabilities at the start and end of MPs term
- Public Institutions
- Constitutional guidelines for public and private sector appointments
i. Merit
ii. Equity
iii. Gender
iv. Affirmative action for marginalized communities
- Heads of the Central Bank, high echelons of the military, Revenue Authority must receive parliamentary approval
- Creation of civil service board
i. Under the supervision of a parliamentary committee, the civil service board will supervise the civil service
- Code of conduct
i. Outlaw ownership of businesses by civil servants
ii. Conflict of interest
- Strong restrictions on the police and security intelligence to prohibit abuse by the executive
- Public finance and allocation of public resources
- Earmarks for public spending must be transparent, equitable and subject to parliamentary scrutiny.
i. These shall include roads, water supply, electrification, public hospitals
- Bill of rights
- Entrenchment, protection and enforcement of individual rights and freedoms and obligations of citizens
i. Especially, freedom of expression consists of the rights to freedom of speech, press, assembly and to petition the government for a redress of grievances, and the implied rights of association and belief.
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