Tensions appear to be running high in Ethiopia as the country’s upper house rules against elections scheduled to hold next week in the northern Tigray region. Calling the polls unconstitutional, this decision places further strain on the already volatile relationship between the federal government and powerful officials in the region.
The ruling party in the region, the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), had announced a while back to the surprise of the federal government and international observers that elections for a regional parliament would take place in the region despite the federal government and electoral board announcing the postponement of all elections.
Pushing its agenda further, the TPLF also argued that Prime Minister Abiy’s mandate should end this month as the parliamentary terms come to an end, and the postponement of elections – due to the coronavirus – that were supposed to have happened in August, was in breach of the constitution and raising the prospect of Abiy becoming an “illegitimate” ruler.
What does the Law in Ethiopia Say?
Responding to TPLF’s decision, the House of Federation, which presides over constitutional disputes, unanimously declared that the polls for regional parliament or other positions as well as the establishment of an election commission in the region were “unconstitutional and therefore void.”
In its statement, the upper house pointed out that the election board established per 351/2012 also overrides the Constitution’s Art. 102, which mandates the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia to organize elections. Hence, it said, per the Constitution’s Art. 9 (1), the State’s proclamation, the Commission and other activities it undertakes are invalid.
However, in a text message forwarded to Reuters on Friday, Getachew Reda, a spokesman for the TPLF in Ethiopia, maintained that the vote would go ahead despite pressure from the federal government.
Earlier in the year, Ethiopia postponed its parliamentary and regional elections that had been scheduled for August, citing the coronavirus pandemic. A new date is yet to be announced. In response to this, the federal parliament extended the prime minister’s term for 12 more months.
