Barry Moussa Barque, an ally of President Faure Gnassingbe of Togo, was elected head of the Senate on Wednesday with unanimous support. This follows the changes made to the Senate’s role through last year’s constitutional amendments.
Barque 82 has been a special advisor to Gnassingbe since 2009 and has held several ministerial roles under Gnassingbe Eyadema, the late father of the current president, who ruled for 38 years before passing away in 2005.
The revised constitution eliminated the process of electing a president through direct universal suffrage and introduced a parliamentary system where the presidency becomes essentially a ceremonial position.
Moving forward, the president of the council of ministers, who leads the majority party in the national assembly—currently Faure Gnassingbe—will ensure the practical exercise of authority under this new setup.
The opposition claims that this change aims to enable Gnassingbe, who has been in power since 2005, to remain as the head of state indefinitely. Under the previous constitution, he would only have had the opportunity to run for the presidency once more later this year. Conversely, the presidential camp argues that the reforms improve the populace’s representation.
The newly structured Senate includes 61 senators; regional and municipal councillors will choose 41, while the president will appoint the remaining 20.
The future president, who will no longer possess executive authority, will be elected by senators and lawmakers, although a date for this election has yet to be determined.
