Based on Article 101 of the Beninese constitution, the President of the National Assembly, Louis Vlavonou, through his spokesperson, has confirmed that Patrice Talon does not require parliamentary authorization for the deployment of troops to Niger.
During a press conference held in Porto-Novo on Friday, August 25, 2023, the spokesperson for the National Assembly, Vitali Boton, conveyed the position of the parliamentary institution regarding the debate on whether or not the institution’s authorization is needed before sending military personnel to the ECOWAS Standby Force.
According to the spokesperson for President Louis Vlavonou, prior authorization from the National Assembly would not be necessary “if our troops were to be deployed to Niger.” He argued that this does not violate the prerogatives of the National Assembly.
Referring to Article 101 of the Beninese constitution, which has been raised by supporters of requiring prior authorization before sending Beninese military to Niger, Vitali Boton nuanced by stating that this article pertains to cases of declaring war.
The operation announced in Niger by the ECOWAS Standby Force, the speaker clarified, resembles more of a peacekeeping mission that falls under the protocol related to conflict prevention, management, and resolution, peacekeeping, and security adopted in 1999.
This clarification from the spokesperson for the President of the National Assembly aims to quell the controversy surrounding the government’s position, which is prepared to send Beninese military personnel for the mission to restore President Mohamed Bazoum, who was a victim of a coup on July 26th last.
