A semi-presidential or dual-executive government structure is among the alternatives tabled at the National Dialogue forum ongoing in Addis Ababa since last week. The National Dialogue Commission has convened 4,000 participants from across the country at the Addis International Convention Center for a conference that is expected to yield major changes to the country’s governance structure, including constitutional amendments. Participants have been divided into eight groups, each tasked with refining a specific agenda identified by the Commission through its public discussions and input collection efforts over the past four years.
Issues that receive a majority consensus (over 75 percent) are slated for adoption. Discussions over the first week of the forum centered around governance, with participants tabling a number of options as a replacement for Ethiopia’s current parliamentary system. Alternative models for political representation and electoral procedures were also under discussion.
Experts proposed presidential and semi-presidential options as alternatives to the current system, in which the public elects representatives and the party holding a majority in Parliament then elects the Prime Minister as head of government. Under the presidential system, the public would elect the president directly or indirectly, making him/her the head of state and the head of the executive. This system would see the legislative and the president hold distinct powers.
Under a semi-presidential, or dual-executive, system, executive power would be shared between the PM and the president. The cabinet would be accountable to both the president and Parliament. During the dialogue sessions this week, the detailed pros and cons of each alternative were presented to participants, who have been tasked with weighing the options and deciding on which model would yield improved accountability and imperviousness to abuse.
“The dialogue participants need to think deeply on these issues before making their decisions,” one scholar said. Another item on the agenda were the chartered cities of Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa. The capital, in particular, has long been at the epicenter of Ethiopia’s ethnic-inclined politics revolving around questions of ownership.
The conference saw four options tabled to settle the debate: granting Addis Ababa status as a sovereign city state, making it part …
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