Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) – The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice Monday nullified the amendment to Burkina Faso’s Electoral Act which excluded some people from participation in the country’s political process.
The Nigeria-based court ruled that the April 7, 2015, Protocol amending the Electoral Act No.014 passed by the National Assembly in 2001 violated the human rights of the plaintiffs.
It therefore ordered that the state of Burkina Faso should remove all obstacles to the participation in election arising from that amendment, and that all the costs of litigation should be borne by state.
The court also ruled that it had jurisdiction to entertain the case.
The case was filed by seven of Burkina Faso’s political parties, including the former ruling Congress for Democracy and Progress of erstwhile President Blaise Compaoré.
In the suit, the political parties and 13 individuals asked the court to hold that the amendment promulgated by the Transitional Government, which came into office after the departure of the former president following the violent demonstrations last October, violated the country’s constitution and other community texts.
A panel of three judges of the Court, led by Hon. Justice Yaya Boiro, heard arguments on June 30 , 2015.
Counsel to the plaintiff, Mr. Moussa Coulibaly, submitted that the amendment excluded the plaintiffs from the electoral process and it should be expunged to enable them regain their constitutional rights to participate in the electoral process.
But the counsels to the government of Burkina Faso, Mr. Mamadou Savadogo and Mr. Guy Herve Kam, urged the Court to declare the suit inadmissible, considering that no violation of human right has been established in this case.
They cited among other cases, the court’s decision in the case of Hissein Habre v. Republic of Senegal, where the court held there must be “proof of violation…” and that the court lacked jurisdiction to rule in matters of electoral laws of national courts.
