The national workshop for reflection and exchange on political and institutional reforms concluded this Friday, July 15, 2016. Organized by the High Commission for Reconciliation and the Strengthening of National Unity (HCRRUN) from July 11 to 15, 2016, at the Radisson Blu Hotel 2 Février in Lomé, this workshop brought together representatives from all social strata of Togo. The aim for participants during this meeting was to “learn about reforms,” to achieve a common understanding of the concept, and to share the experiences of sister countries, notably Ghana and Morocco.
The inaugural conference, delivered by Professor Dodji DKOKOROKO on the concept of reforms, was followed by 5 different panels covering the implementation of reforms, democracy, local governance, and the roles and responsibilities of actors and stakeholders in the process. Issues related to the Republics of yesterday, today, and tomorrow, as well as presidential terms and political regimes, and the ills undermining the implementation of reforms in Togo, were thoroughly examined.
In her closing address, Mrs. Awa NANA DABOYA, President of the HCRRUN, noted that “No one doubts the need to consolidate the democratic process, to improve the living environment, and the paths to explore are diverse and transversal.”
Among other avenues, she mentioned respecting constitutional deadlines, readjusting the political regime, reformatting the parliamentary system, establishing an electoral court, and consolidating the republican role of the Army. The management of ethnic and tribal identities in governance, the modernization of land management, and the adapted regulation of the regulatory and anthropological framework for exercising the protocol and administrative privileges of chieftaincy were also considered.
“Following the exchanges of experiences, but especially the debates marked by confrontations and tinged with polemics, we can say that our work was fruitful,” declared Mrs. Awa NANA DABOYA.
The proceedings were officially closed by Mr. Puis AGBETOMEY, Keeper of the Seals, Minister of Justice, representing the Prime Minister, who himself represented the President of the Republic.
He reaffirmed the government’s willingness and availability to support the HCRRUN in its mission.
