NATIONAL ASSEMBLY NEWS: CENA Suspended to Save Public Funds
The National Assembly of Benin unanimously passed Law No. 2026-14 this Friday, July 10, resulting in the provisional dissolution of the National Autonomous Electoral Commission (CENA). All provisions governing the institution have been removed from the Electoral Code.
Sponsored by MP Augustin Ahouanvoébla, this law repeals Title II of the Electoral Code, which organized the functioning of the CENA, the Electoral Council, and the Directorate General of Elections.
The institution is suspended while a study is conducted on its future restructuring. In the meantime, a decree issued by the Council of Ministers will manage the settlement of its commitments and the preservation of its assets. CENA staff will be reassigned to other positions within the civil service.
The timing was a major factor in the decision. The five-year term of the current members of the National Autonomous Electoral Commission (CENA) ends on July 14. However, following recent reforms that extended political terms to seven years, no elections are scheduled in Benin before 2031.
For the members of parliament, maintaining an active electoral structure for five years without any elections to be held represented an unjustified financial burden. It was this argument of budgetary discipline that convinced the entire assembly.
The session was chaired by the Speaker of Parliament, Joseph F. Djogbénou, in the presence of the Minister of Justice, Yvon Détchénou.
✍️ By Joseph HOUNKPATIN
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