The President of the ECOWAS Court of Justice, Edward Amoako Asante, has said political developments in the region can hamper efforts of democratic consolidation if the developments are not appropriately managed. Justice Asante was delivering a goodwill message at the official opening of the first Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament on Monday, July 1, 2024, currently underway in Abuja, Nigeria.
According to Justice Asante, the session coincides with a period of seismic political developments in the region, "which if not appropriately managed, can have grave implications for the region and can potentially hamper our efforts of democratic consolidation, regional cohesion and the integration of the region."
He said the developments relate to the resurgence of military coups in the region and the avowed intention of Member States that refuse to return to the Community, despite signing treaties. He informed the regional legislature that last year, the Court sought to draw attention to this scourge by providing a platform for its 2023 international conference in Banjul, to discuss the creeping threat to the region's struggle to entrench democracy. He expressed awareness that Parliament has been engaged through members from these countries, with high-level officials in order to ensure their overdue return to the ECOWAS family, to ensure that they can continue their relentless march towards the development of the region by leveraging its rich human and material resources.
"This is a noble initiative for which Parliament should be commended and it should be sustained under this legislature until the realization of the objective that informs the decision in the spirit of solidarity which is the foundation of the Community," he stated.
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Asante assured that the Court remains available to provide whatever support necessary in the furtherance of this and other initiatives, to preoccupy members during the Sixth Legislature, through its standing, joint, and ad hoc committees. He urged members of the community parliament to leverage the opportunity to appraise members' efforts by the Court, to democratize access to the Court through the use of current technology. He informed the legislature that as a legacy of the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020, the Court has introduced the Electronic Case Management System (ECMS), which enables virtual court sessions with lawyers and litigants from the comfort of their homes and offices, thereby reducing the costs for lawyers and applicants. He said the ECMS is scheduled for launch in September and ahead of the launch, has already conducted three training exercises for lawyers of the three language blocks in the Member States of Togo, Ghana, and Cape Verde, and it has the objective of improving access and making the Court fairer and more egalitarian. However, he lamented that despite the Court making significant progress in improving the human rights situation in the region and strengthening democracy, challenges remain on the issues of enforcement, staffing, and funding.
"We are hopeful that based on the cordial relation with parliament, members will rededicate themselves to work with the Court in the resolution of these challenges for a more effective Court that is responsible and continues to be a source of pride to the Community," Justice Asante concludes.
