ECOWAS Parliamentarian Advocates For Direct Election Of Members

Senator Osita Izunaso, a member of the 6th ECOWAS Parliament, has proposed that members of the regional legislative body be elected directly by their constituents rather than through nomination by their countries, as is currently the case.

Izunaso, the First Rapporteur of the Parliament’s Joint Committee on Public Accounts, made the call in an interview with journalists in Abidjan on Tuesday.

Izunaso (APC-Imo West) is Nigeria’s fourth-term senator and the longest-serving lawmaker from the South-East and South-South geopolitical zones.

Speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of the parliament’s joint committee on administration, budget, finance, public accounts, macroeconomic policy, and economic research, he proposed amending the Supplementary Act to accomplish this.

“The direct election of members of the ECOWAS Parliament is long overdue.

“We should take a cue from the European Parliament, where members are directly elected by their constituents.

“I believe we need to develop a framework for direct election of members to the ECOWAS Parliament.

“That will go a long way towards solving the majority of the parliament’s problems, and I am confident in its effectiveness.

“I mentioned it when I was making my contributions, and I believe that is the best way to proceed.

“The modalities must be worked out, and this is one of the issues we will agree on during this conference.

“The committee in charge will be given the responsibility of developing a framework for holding direct elections to the ECOWAS Parliament.

“When that happens, I am confident that more powers will be granted to Parliament,” he said.

Izunaso stated that direct elections will allow people to directly elect their representatives to parliament, regardless of whether they have previously served in parliament.

According to him, it must be open to anyone who wishes to run for office because parliamentarians are not the only ones who possess a wealth of knowledge.

The lawmaker stated that there are non-parliamentarians who are more knowledgeable and could potentially make better contributions if elected to Parliament.

“The advantage of directly electing ECOWAS parliamentarians is that it increases their authority, powers, and checks and balances.

“This is consistent with the principles of separation of powers, because direct elections give the legislature more power.

“So, it will be more beneficial to the ECOWAS sub-region than it is now,” the senator explained.

Izunaso also advocated for an amendment to the Supplementary Act to give the ECOWAS Parliament complete legislative authority, pointing out that there were numerous gaps that needed to be closed.

He observed that a situation in which the ECOWAS Parliament lacks legislative powers over budgeting would not bode well for the community.

“So, we propose amending the Supplementary Act to give the ECOWAS Parliament more budgetary and auditing powers.

“This is because if you have a parliament that does not exercise legislative duties, there is a gap; something is missing,” he explained.

The parliamentarian also proposed that certain key appointments in the ECOWAS parliament be subject to parliamentary confirmation.

He proposed that the President of the ECOWAS Commission, the commissioners, and other top management staff be subject to parliamentary confirmation.

On the threat of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger leaving ECOWAS, the lawmaker stated that their departure would result in the dual challenges of funding and exclusion.

“So it is not just about the need for more funding, but also about inclusivity; if we call ourselves ECOWAS, we should all be together.

“We are not happy that any of our member countries want to leave, because the more we have, the better, so we want them back.

“But I believe that the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of Government is working to resolve the issues,” Izunaso continued.