Analysts say TPLF decision to hold election in Tigray region could trigger a deep political crisis for Ethiopia
borkena
May 4, 2020
Following three days of an executive committee meeting, Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) announced on Monday that it will conduct elections on its own.
The decision came just a day before the Ethiopian House of People’s Representatives met to deliberate on how to go about the next election after the General Election scheduled for August 29, 2020, was canceled due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) disclosed last month that it can not carry out the election as scheduled based on a study it conducted.
On Thursday last week, Chairwomen of the Board, Birtukan Mideksa, appeared before the parliament to share its findings regarding why it is impossible to conduct an election in August as scheduled. And the parliament agreed, through an administered vote, that the election can not take place in August.
The government discussed four possible options with opposition parties, including the Tigray People’s Liberation Front which is acting much like a militant opposition party against Abiy Ahmed’s Prosperity Party, regarding how to go about organizing the election outside of the required constitutional timeframe due to the Coronavirus circumstances.
Dissolving parliament, declaring a state of emergency, amending the Constitution, and seeking a constitutional interpretation are the possible options to organize the election outside of the constitutional time frame.
Based on the meeting held last week, government and opposition parties are on the same page that all the options are legal and constitutional. Come Tuesday, the Ethiopian parliament will decide as to which of the four options are in the best interests of Ethiopia.
It was under the above circumstance that TPLF came up with its own decision to conduct the election. It is unclear whether legislation governing elections in Ethiopia and the election board would allow that to happen.
In a statement issued on Monday, TPLF made numerous, but familiar, allegations against the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and his prosperity party.
In a five-point resolution written in Tigrigna, TPLF alleged that the Prosperity Party is moving along the line of “dismantling the constitutional order.”
The organization also called upon the House of Peoples Representatives and the House of Federation to stop Prosperity Party’s move to dismantle the Constitutional order.
“…COVID 19 has become a good opportunity to establish a one-man authoritarian rule,” alleges TPLF’s statement.
Elections schedules of several countries around the world have been affected by the COVID 19. Some, like Bolivia, Chile, and Switzerland, have canceled general elections. Several other countries have canceled provincial elections, municipal elections, and bi-elections. Many countries in Africa have experienced similar situations.
Ethiopia’s polarized political environment seems to be a different story. Yet, most opposition parties have agreed that fighting Coronavirus has to be a top priority.
TPLF has been acting like a de facto state within a state since Abiy Ahmed became Prime Minister in March 2018.
Reports from opposition parties in the region indicate that TPLF has been systematically mobilizing for the secession agenda after losing dominance in the Federal government. The organization mobilizes along “Tigray is under siege,” theme; in the north from the Eritrean government and in the south from “Neftegna,” as they put it.
The celebration of the 45 anniversary of TPLF in February projected what appeared to be a projection of militarization in the region.
Too many Ethiopians express concern that the position of the TPLF government could lead the country into political chaos.
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የአብይ መንግስት ሆነ የኢትዮጵያ ሚዲያ እየተፈጠረ ያለውን ጉዳይ በዝምታ እያለፉት ነው. በታሪክ መወቀሳቸው አይቀርም
Civic organizations in Addis Ababa need to find ways to do the same as Tigrai because otherwise Takele Uma might illegally for the second time try to extend his stay in the office , no matter what Takele Uma must be gone from the Addis Ababa government’s job by September 2020 , that’s why all of the honest hard working Addis Ababa residents must strongly resist Takele Uma while being vigilant in documenting evidences by using the “follow the money” strategy about Takele Uma’s illegal actions.
Shortly after his removal from power Takele Uma need to be brought to Justice for the crimes he committed to the people of Addis Ababa same as PM Abiy will have to face justice for the support he shown to Takele Uma’s killing and demolishing spree of honest people in Addis Ababa while he continued selling Addis Ababa’s low income Housing projects and other key location’s lands to his own personal extended family members and to others specifically who are only members of his ethnicity the Oromos, by implementation of heavy corruption making him a thug billionaire overnight.
TPLF have nothing to offer to Tigray or Ethiopia.
They are shameless thieves.
Their ideology is bankrupt.
They are just making noise, which they are entitled to do so ( unlike when they had absolute power)
PM is ignoring them and getting on with it, which is the best strategy.
The Tigrai state will be sanctioned by getting no budget from the Federal government for holding an illegal election . Tigrai state needs to think twice before deciding to hold an election without the federal government’s electoral board permission because without the federal budget given to Tigrai , theTigrai military defense budget alone cannot feed all of Tigrai’s budget.
After the election Chairman Debre goes:
Dear comrades! Today August 31, 2020, I hereby declare the formal establishment of the People’s Republic of Tigray and its Central People’s Government! Beginning today Let Hundreds/Thousand Flowers Bloom!!! Let’s Do The Great Leap Forward!!! Let The Workers of The World Unite!!! We Are Now Well Developed and Socialist, Let the First Era of Communism Shine In the Motherland/Fatherland People’s Republic of Tigray!!! Death to Imperialism!!! Yankees Go Home!!!