[First Ivorian Senatorial] Of 11 women, 8 elected

Out of 108 candidates including 11 women selected by the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI), women have shown that they now count in the Ivorian political class. An awakening that says a lot about the determination of the fairer sex to take part in the political debate. A strong signal.

The provisional results of the first senatorial elections in Côte d’Ivoire on Saturday, March 24, 2018, proclaimed 8 women elected out of 11 detainees.

The Palme d’Or returns to the Folon region (in northern Côte d’Ivoire). The single RHDP list conducted by Mrs. Chantal Fanny was passed with a participation rate of 94.21% out of 121 registrants and 114 voters. White Bulletin: 1. Votes cast: 113 votes or 100%.

In addition, we can mention among others, Mrs. Sarra Fdika in the Baffing, Adjoua N’Go Louise in Aries, Coulibaly Mman spells Ouattara in the District of Abidjan, Beugr Orhon Amelie in the Gbokle, Fatou Sangare in the Gho, Assa Emilinne Epse Boby in the N’Zi.

The rallying coalition of the Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP) logically won, in the absence of the opposition boycotting the vote, an overwhelming victory in the first senatorial elections in Côte d’Ivoire, winning 50 of the 66 seats in play.

The President of the Republic, Alassane Ouattara himself will appoint the last third of senators, 33 others to have the total membership of 99 members of the very first Ivorian Senate.

The Senate was created by the Constitution of 2016, of the 3rd Republic approved by referendum. It will be the second chamber of Ivorian parliament, next to the National Assembly. The municipal and regional councilors of the current town halls and regions as well as the deputies constituted the constituency of the poll by the indirect universal suffrage held in each of the 31 regions and 197 communes of the country.

Practicing the policy of the empty chair, the opposition pays the price of its approach. Having only one member of the National Assembly in 2016 (Pascal Affi N’Guessan), out of 225 elected deputies for 6 parliamentary groups, the opposition had only two means to hinder the adoption of the new constitution Ivorian who had written in his founding texts.

The marches as first means, have been repeatedly repressed and the call to boycott did not give the expected result. The new constitution of the 3rd Republic was approved by referendum.

Today, the opposition accuses President Alassane Ouattara of having succumbed to “clientelism” by creating this Senate which, according to it, will be “budgétivore”.

Above all, it calls for a reform of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) that it accuses of being in favor of the government, before any senatorial or municipal election, but especially before the presidential election of 2020.

Bamba Sindou, coordinator of Poeci, the Platform of Civil Society Organizations for Election Observation in Côte d’Ivoire supports the following: “One could say that the government wants a single-colored Senate. “

As for the president of CIVIS Côte d’Ivoire, an association for education for citizenship and eco-citizenship, he looks at what this institution can bring to Côte d’Ivoire. “The role of a senator is to consolidate democracy and the rule of law. Its remit is to vote the law, grant the tax, control the action of the Government and evaluate public policies, “he says.

History will remember that the electors were 7011 deputies and local elected officials in the election of the first Senate. 108 candidates including 11 women selected by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC). 38 polling stations in 35 polling places.

For these first senatorial elections, the Ivorian women have just given a strong signal to the Ivorian political class, demonstrating to a large extent that it will now be necessary to count on them.

Le Montagnard