President Bola Tinubu has called on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to consider electing its members directly through universal suffrage instead of doing so through national parliaments.

At the inauguration of the sixth legislature of the ECOWAS parliament on Thursday in Abuja, Mr Tinubu explained that doing so would give citizens of member states a say in who represented them.

He said, “The practice of directly electing public officers aligns with democratic principles that Nigeria upholds. This principle is also in line with the spirit of the ECOWAS’ protocol on democracy and good governance.

“We believe this will ensure that citizens will have a direct say in their representation and the legitimacy and credibility it will provide.

“As a one-time legislator, I look forward to reviewing the proposal regarding this matter. We stand to support the direct elections into ECOWAS Parliament.”

The president assured members of the Sixth ECOWAS Parliament that Nigeria would continue to support it in achieving its objectives.

In a goodwill message, Yusuf Tuggar, Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, called for collaboration among ECOWAS executive, judicial and legislative arms, stressing that it was critical for effective, responsive and transparent governance.

He urged the new members of the parliament to ensure that their positions on critical issues were harmonised with the decisions of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government.

Mr Tuggar said parliament was crucial in the face of various challenges confronting ECOWAS, adding, “It is, therefore, imperative that the parliament continues to work in synergy with the ECOWAS Commission and other institutions that serve as the executive and judicial arms of our organisation.”

He explained that consistency in ECOWAS’ collective stance would strengthen its voice on the international stage and prevent any perception of disunity within the organisation.

In his speech, the president of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Toure, warned that the bloc was currently facing the threat of disintegration, stressing that the subregion’s challenges were numerous and diverse.

He emphasised that disintegration would aggravate the subregion’s security challenges, culminating in political isolation and job cuts, and affect ECOWAS citizens’ movement under its protocols.

“ECOWAS is faced with the risk of integration following the threat by Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger on January 29, 2024, of their intentions to quit the bloc.

“Considering the perceived consequences of their decisions, ECOWAS opened a dialogue and initiated other immediate measures, which included representatives from these three countries to join the dialogue to resolve the issues,” Mr Toure said.

In his remark, Nigerian Senate President Godswill Akpabio described the inauguration of the 6th ECOWAS Legislature as the dawn of a new era in West Africa.

Also speaking, former Speaker of the 5th Parliament, Sidie Tunis, called for the election of members into the ECOWAS Parliament by direct universal suffrage, saying the parliament under him had already initiated the move.

Mr Tinubu, the chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, officially inaugurated 97 members into the 6th ECOWAS parliament. 

(NAN)