The Togolese government has strongly reacted to the ruling of the CEDEAO Court of Justice, which qualified the constitutional reform in March 2024 as a ‘change of government unconstitutional’. In its first official response, the government corrected the clock on the real powers of the regional institution based in Abuja.
“No Competence of Control of Constitutional Legality”
The government recalled that the CEDEAO Court has no competence to control the internal law and no title to judge a national constituent power.
“The court has no competence of control of constitutional legality, nor a title to judge a national constituent power”, stated the official communiqué.
The government reminded that if the regional court is authorized to control the respect of human rights and violations of the common law, it cannot substitute the constitutional court of a sovereign state.
Irrecevability of certain petitioners: The Court has itself excluded the Association of Victims of Torture in Togo (ASVITTO) and the ADDI political party for lack of proof of legal registration.
Absence of violation of the right to participate: The regional jurisdiction did not find any breach by Togo concerning its citizens’ right to participate in public affairs.
Absence of evidence: The government denounced qualifications based on procedures of intention without a single piece of evidence to support a possible ‘democratic anti-design’.
No Impact on the Current Constitutional Order
In Lomé, the Court’s conclusion logically confirms the applicability of the new fundamental text: the jurisdiction refused to order the repeal of the 2024 constitutional law, as demanded by the petitioners, and did not pronounce any financial reparation.
