Electoral council : Tiando passes the baton to Sacca Lafia

After 7 years spent at the head of the National and Autonomous Electoral Commission, the now ex-president of the CENA Emanuel Tiando has packed his bags, leaving room for the newly appointed Electoral Council, which will be led by the former interior minister Sacca Lafia. The handover ceremony took place on Thursday 15 last July at the headquarters of the institution.

One day after their swearing in before the Head of State, Patrice Talon, the members of the first team of the Electoral Council did not wait long to take service. Elected to head the said Electoral Council, Sacca Lafia received from the hands of his predecessor the keys to the institution he will chair for the next five years. He will therefore lead the team that will organize the next elections in Benin until the general elections of 2026. Aware of the challenges to be met in terms of organizing elections, the former president of Cos-LEPI did not fail to congratulate the outgoing team, in particular its president, for the efforts made.

Attributes of the Electoral Council

 This body born of the last modification of the electoral code ensures the proper organization of the polls and the sincerity of the votes as indicated in the article 19 of law, on the electoral code in the Republic of Benin. It also adopts the rules of procedure of the CENA, approves the activity program of the Directorate General of Elections, approves the draft budgets drawn up by the General Directorate of Elections approves the activity report of this directorate. It organizes consultations with all stakeholders in the electoral process, informs the public of the timetable for each election, reviews the application files, validates and publishes the applications. He is also in charge, supervising voting operations and the centralization of results. The Electoral Council publishes the provisional results of the legislative and presidential elections, and sends it to the Constitutional Court. On the other hand, it publishes the final results of the members of the municipal councils.

Firmin KASSAGA