News:
August 4, 2020
Ahead of Presidential and Parliamentary elections in some West African sub-regional countries this year, first rapporteur of the Community Parliament’s committee on Political Affairs, Peace, Security and African Peer Review Mechanism, Mahama Ayariga is call for activation of the activities of the committee.
According to him with the coronavirus pandemic setting in it makes it expensive and difficult to fly and observe elections with upcoming elections in Ghana and Ivory Cost hence zoom meeting by the committee should be activated.
He further pointed out in an interview that airports and borders had been closed due to COVID-19 outbreak.
“As we speak we have an ongoing crises in Mail resulting from elections ECOWAS is seeking to intervene and apart from Ghana and Ivory Coast having election this year, there are other countries who have elections next year. Guinea’s political systems seems to have a stall a bit, with all this the committee needs to be active”.
Mr. Ayariga further noted that the committee has an advantage to benefit from previous Community lawmakers and current ones who are in countries where the elections would be held, as very often when the Community Parliament intervene when there is crises it is done through the Community lawmakers which has proven very useful.
He gave his experience in Serra Leon where he was part of the team of Community lawmakers who resolve issue there as a result after their election, “we work through our colleagues who were already on the ground.
“They normally open up and tell you what the real situation is on the ground who the real players are and guide you on how to proceed with your intervention to resolve the problems effectively, that is why I said at the Second Extra Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament recently for the Committee to be active”.
Again, by meeting virtually as a committee he said they could generate a report to the Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament and other relevant institutions and provide some useful ideas as to how some of the conflict within the sub-region can better be manage.
MPs cannot afford private jets, but Heads of States can he alluded to the current case in Mail where they fly in and out the same day to ensure they are not infected, “
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com