Dawda A. Jallow, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice dismissed the criticism by some people that the constitution building process was not consultative.
"There was a consultative process for the draft constitution of the Gambia, which led to significant progress and brought [political] parties closer to agreement on key issues. The involvement of diverse stakeholders and leadership facilitations were crucial in advancing the process," Dawda Jallow said.
Minister Jallow addressed the media in a press conference held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara Conference Center on Wednesday, 28 August 2024 to shed light on the Constitution (Promulgation) Bill 2024 that was gazetted recently.
"There is no doubt that further discussions and dialogue are needed to reach a full consensus," he said while dismissing the allegation that there was no consultation.
He explained that the report from the consensus-building process by the Ministry and its partner, the International IDEA, was one of the documents considered by the cabinet during its review.
"Building a constitution is a complex task as it aims to address numerous societal issues in a single document due to significant national issues a constitution seeks to tackle. It garners greater attention and contention than ordinary legislation, which usually focuses on specific aspects of society," he said.
He said the Gambia Government remains committed to bringing a new progressive constitution that is an embodiment of their collective will and resolve for democracy, good governance, separation of powers, sustainable environment and equitable distribution and use of resources, rule of law, equitable observance of principles of fundamental human rights and freedoms.
The Minister said the Constitution (Promulgation) Bill 2024 is a step by the Gambia Government to strengthen democracy and entrench the rule of law after decades of authoritarian rule. He explained that the journey began in 2018 when the government established the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) through the CRC Act of 2017. The defunct CRC was tasked to draft a new constitution that will reflect the will of Gambians, and address the shortcomings of the 1997 Constitution which was regarded as inadequate to uphold the tenets of democracy and good governance.
The CRC engaged in an 18-month consultation with Gambians both at home and abroad, and submitted the Draft Constitution in March 2020.
"The draft constitution [of 2020] was regarded as a pivotal instrument to guide the Gambia through a trajectory to democratic transition," the Minister said.
The Minister said the Draft Constitution of 2020 was 'severely opposed'.
"The draft constitution passed through the first reading of the legislative process but it did not sail through the second reading," Jallow said.
The Minister of Justice said some of the major reasons that account for the failure of the draft to pass the second reading include the term limit for the presidency - the retroactivity clause, citizenship and the processes in impeaching a sitting president among others.
"The rejection and subsequent failure of the Draft Constitution highlighted a deep political division between those who largely support the draft and those who opposed it," Jallow said.
He explained that the government sought support from International IDEA to resolve the impasse to mediate and find a way forward.
"The mediation process involved several rounds of consultations with political parties, civil society and other stakeholders. Despite efforts to build consensus, some contentious issues remained unresolved," the Minister said.
"The Constitution Bill 2024 emerged from the process and reflects the outcome of the efforts at mediation. It also incorporates adjustments based on lessons learnt from the failed draft constitution of the CRC. Moreover, the Constitution Bill 2024 represents a renewed attempt to make a tortuous that can garner the necessary support in the National Assembly and be endorsed by the people at the referendum," the Minister said.
The Attorney General said the Bill aims to establish a legal framework that would not only address the historical injustices of the past but also lay a solid foundation for a democratic and prosperous future for the Gambia.
The Minister gave a detailed explanation of the consultations made before the Constitutional Bill 2024 was tabled.
He said the Gambia Government through the Ministry of Justice and in partnership with International IDEA facilitated a series of mediation sessions on the revival of the draft constitution for the Gambia.
"Since 2020, when the draft was struck out, the drafting team from the Ministry [of Justice] and IDEA have worked to adjust the different clauses of the draft constitution of which action was agreed by stakeholders," the Minister said.
He explained that International IDEA met President Adama Barrow on 12 January 2021 to brief him on the progress and share thoughts on the next process envisaged to ensure that the revised constitutional document successfully passes legislative stages and is later approved through a referendum.
He stated that IDEA with the Ministry engaged media editors as well as leaders of Gambia's civil society transitional working group, Gender Platform and the Youth Forum. He said the consultative process included community outreaches and sensitisations over the radios, which included listener phone-in calls.
"Overall, significant progress has been made since the mediation process began in December 2020," he said.
The Minister said the consultation process took two phases intended to bring about consensus on key contentious issues identified in the 2020 CRC Draft Constitution.
The first phase took place between December 2020 and March 2021 and was facilitated by the former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Goodluck E. Jonathan.
"This phase involved intense consultation with political party leaders, civil society organisations, traditional rulers, and faith-based organisations," he said.
He said there was a high-level retreat for the political party leaders on the draft constitution held in Abuja, Nigeria from 23 to 25 February 2021.
"The event aimed to secure party leadership commitment to the constitutional process," he said.
He stated all political leaders attended the retreat except two (2). A representative of the ECOWAS Commission was also present.
"In preparation for this consultative retreat in Abuja, the revised draft constitution was circulated to the leaders of the political parties and civil society for their information, review and any further input prior to gazetting," Jallow said.
He explained that the consultative retreat was meant for political party leaders and the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to meet with Dr Goodluck Jonathan to assess the adjustments that have been made to the CRC draft. It also allowed Dr Jonathan and the ECOWAS leadership to encourage the party leaders to review their commitment to seeing the constitutional process to fruition. Goodluck Jonathan came to the Gambia to meet with the political leaders and addressed the members of the National Assembly.
"By the end of this phase, a consensus was reached on 21 out of 24 issues identified leading to an agreement to restart the process after the 2021 general elections," he said.
He stated that the second phase began in August 2023 and was facilitated by His Excellency Dr Muhammed Ibn Chambas, African Union High Representative on Silencing the Guns, and three local moral guarantors in the persons of Imam Darboe, Bishop Banni Manga and Mrs Fatou Jagne-Senghore.
"This phase involved follow-up continuation with party leaders on the remaining 3 or 4 issues of contention," he said.
He said on 12 August 2023 Dr Chambas and the local moral guarantors conducted bilateral consultation with political party leaders including Honourable Seedy S.K. Njie of NPP, HonourableOusainou Darboe of UDP, Honourable Halifa Sallah of PDOIS and Honourable Mamma Kandeh of GDC. The discussions were centred around the possibility of reintroducing the draft constitution by seeking consensus on certain aspects of the draft constitution that are considered contentious.
On 14 August 2023, there was a working lunch held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Center. This was followed by an information and consultation session where leaders expressed their thoughts and opinions on the reintroduction of the draft constitution and reiterated their support for the reintroduction of the draft constitution. In the evening, Dr Chambas held a dinner where he briefed the international partners on the progress of the consultations with the political parties and the way forward.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
On 15 August 2023, Dr Chambas and his team discussed with members of the Inter-Party Committee (IPC). The Minister said this was followed by another session with CSO platforms involved in the constitution building process.
On 12 February 2024, Dr Chambas paid a courtesy visit to President Adama Barrow to brief him on the consultations held with various stakeholders and discussed the next step in the constitution building process. On the same day, he hosted a working dinner with international partners to brief them and provide an update on the progress of the consultation process.
On 13 February 2024, he held a consultative meeting with political party leaders represented in the National Assembly to discuss the draft constitution to pave the way for the reintroduction of the draft constitution. This included a discussion with Honourable Halifa Sallah - leader of PDOIS, Honourable Ousainou Darboe - the leader of the UDP and Honourable Mamma Kandeh - the leader of the GDC.
The Minister said information sessions were held with several stakeholders including CSOs, traditional rulers, faith-based organisations and induction sessions for National Assembly members and capacity building for the National Assembly Standing Committee on Human Rights and Constitutional Affairs.
"During the second phase, a consensus was reached by National Assembly members on compromises reached during the first phase and on the remaining issues of contention. Party leaders of the National Assembly confirmed this consensus. However, a few technical issues, such as cross-carpeting by MPs and citizenship, were not settled. Further intra-party dialogue and consensus building with independent members of the National Assembly was recommended," he said. Follow Foroyaa's subsequent publications for the questions and responses provided by the Minister on some of the clauses in the Draft Constitution (Promulgation) Bill 2024.
