Central African Republic 2013 Constitution - Page 5 of 13

Table of Contents

Title IV. Of the National Council of the Transition

Article 49

The legislative and constitutive power of the Central African Republic lies with the National Council of the Transition.

Article 50

The National Council of the Transition is composed of one hundred and thirty five (135) members representing the different political and socio-professional categories of the country.

Members of the National Council of the transition bear the title of National Councilor. Each National Councilor is a representative of the Nation.

Members of the National Council of the Transition are appointed by the organizations from which they come for the duration of the Transition. They can only be replaced in the event of their death, voluntary resignation, permanent incapacity due to medical causes, or if their removal is announced by a vote in plenary of the National Council of the Transition. The list of appointed National Councilors by the organizations to become members of the National Council of the Transition is to be announced by the Constitutional Court.

Votes by National Councilors are personal. The ballot is carried out as a public ballot or through a secret vote, except in the case of the election of a person, which must always be carried out through a secret vote. Any imperative mandate shall be deemed null and void. The rules of procedure of the National Council of the Transition can in exceptional cases authorize proxy voting. No one can receive more than one proxy.

Article 51

The National Council of the Transition elects a Bureau from within its midst composed of:

A President

A Vice-President

A General Rapporteur

A Deputy General Rapporteur

Two Quaestors

The members of the Bureau are elected by their peers for the duration of the Transition.

In the event of the death, voluntary resignation, permanent incapacity due to medical causes of the President of the National Council of the Transition, the Vice-President replaces him and carries out his mandate till the end. Elections for a new Vice-President shall proceed within eight (8) days of this vacancy. If the National Council of the Transition is not in session, it will be immediately reconvened in an extraordinary session.

In the event of the death, voluntary resignation, permanent incapacity due to medical causes of a member of the Bureau of the National Council of the Transition, their functions will be provisionally carried out by another member of the Bureau appointed by the President of the National Council of the Transition. Elections for a replacement to carry out their mandate till the end shall proceed within eight (8) days of this vacancy. If the National Council of the Transition is not in session, the election takes place as a priority as soon as the next session is convened.

Article 52

Members of the National Council of the Transition enjoy parliamentary immunity. As a result, no Councilor member of the National Council of the Transition can be prosecuted, investigated or arrested, detained or judged because of their opinions or votes cast during the performance of their duties.

During the sessions, no Councilor member of the National Council of the Transition can be prosecuted or arrested for criminal or correctional matters unless authorization has been granted by the National Council of the Transition by secret vote, with an absolute majority of existing members.

Out of session, no Councilor member of the National Council of the Transition can be prosecuted or arrested unless authorization has been granted by the Bureau of the National Council of the Transition. This authorization can be suspended if the National Council of the Transition so whishes by an absolute majority.

Any Councilor member of the National Council of the Transition caught in flagrante delicto or fleeing from the Civil and Criminal Offenses Commission may be prosecuted and arrested without authorization from the National Council of the Transition or its Bureau.

The prosecution of a Councilor member of the National Council of the Transition shall be suspended until the end of their mandate, except in the event where parliamentary immunity has been lifted, if the National Council of the Transition requires it by an absolute majority of votes of existing members.

Any Councilor member of the National Council of the Transition who is the object of a definitive criminal conviction will be struck off the list of Councilors members of the National Council of the Transition and replaced by the body that appointed them.

Article 53

For the adoption of the Constitution and other framework texts of the Transition, decisions are taken within the National Council of the Transition by consensus. After exhaustion of means seeking to reach a consensus, decisions are taken by a two-thirds majority (2/3) of attending National Councilors. For all other texts, decisions are taken by a majority of attending National Councilors.

Article 54

The National Council of the Transition has a special budget and enjoys financial autonomy.

The Budget Managers of the National Council of the Transition are appointed from outside of its members, by the President of the National Council of the Transition after consultation with the Bureau.

Control of budget management is subject to the rules of public finance accounting.

Article 55

The National Council of the Transition is in charge amongst other things of:

Electing the Head of State of the Transition and the Bureau of the National Council of the Transition;

Drafting and adopting the Constitutional Charter of the Transition;

Drafting and adopting a draft Constitution to be submitted to the people by way of referendum;

Adopting as it is the draft law on an electoral code agreed on by consensus on September 21st 2012

Legislating in matters of law;

Drafting and adopting its own rules of procedure, in accordance with the Constitutional Charter of the Transition.

Article 56

The National Council of the Transition regulates the Nation’s accounts. To this end, it is assisted by the Court of Auditors.

It can put the Court of Auditors in charge of any enquiry or study to do with public receipts and expenditure or with the management of the national treasury and public resources.

Article 57

The National Council of the Transition is the only body authorized to declare war. It convenes specially to this end.

The Head of State of the Transition informs the Nation of it by a message.

Article 58

The following are matters of law:

Rules concerning the following areas:
- Civil rights and fundamental safeguards granted to citizens as well as public freedoms;
  
  Respect of gender quotas in decision-making bodies;
  
  Constraints imposed on Central Africans and on resident foreigners on their person or assets in the name of public interest and national defense;
  
  The nationality, status and capacity of people;
  
  Matrimonial regimes, inheritance and donations;
  
  The status of foreigners and immigration;
  
  The organization of the civil registry;
  
  The determination of crimes and offences along with the corresponding penalties;
  
  Criminal procedure, civil procedure, commercial law, social law, amnesty, the creation of new jurisdictional orders, the status of magistrates and of the law profession;
  
  The organization of public and ministerial offices, the professions of public and ministerial officials and liberal professions;
  
  Fundamental safeguards granted to military and civil servants;
  
  General financial and administrative organization;
  
  The regulatory framework for political parties and associations;
  
  The electoral code;
  
  The privatization of public sector companies and the nationalization of companies;
  
  The creation and dissolution of public institutions;
  
  The creation and dissolution of bodies of control, consultation, regulation and mediation;
  
  The rules of editing and publishing;
  
  The development plan of the Republic;
  
  The progressive and widespread development and implementation plan of the Sango language;
  
  Protecting the environment, the regimes of domains, lands, forestry and mining;
  
  Finance laws;
  
  The laws of regulations;
  
  The base, rates and collection methods of taxes and impositions of all types;
  
  The issuing of currency;
  
  State of warning, state of emergency, state of alert and state of siege;
  
  Bank holidays and public holidays;
Fundamental principles:
- Of property law, civil and commercial rights and obligations;
  
  Of education, culture, scientific research, technical and technological and of vocational training;
  
  Of the right to assembly and peaceful demonstration;
  
  Of the right to petition;
  
  Of hygiene and public health;
  
  Of insurance, cooperatives and credit;
  
  Of devolution and regionalization;
  
  Of the administration and local authorities;
  
  Of the general organization of national defense;
  
  Of the general organization of the justice and prison system
  
  Of the right to work, the right to join a union and social security.

Article 59

Finance laws determine the nature, amount and allocation of resources and expenditure of the State for a certain year taking into account an economic and financial balance that they define.

Finance laws are necessarily voted before the end of the fiscal year at hand. If the finance law setting out the resources and expenditure for a fiscal year is not passed in time by the Government, the latter will ask as a matter of urgency for the National Council of the Transition to adopt a law continuing by provisional twelfths of the previous fiscal year’s finance law.

Tabled by the Government at the latest on October 15th, the budget is authorized by the finance law, before the beginning of a new year. This law can only include provisions of a financial nature.

Any amendment proposal to the finance law is irreceivable when it has as a consequence either a reduction of resources not made up for by savings, or an increase in State expenditure not made up for by an equivalent increase in resources.

The irreceivability of an amendment shall be established by the President of the National Council of the Transition, after consulting with the Bureau of the National Council of the Transition.

At the Government’s request, the National Council of the Transition gives its opinion on all or part of a draft finance law retaining only those amendments accepted by the Government.

Article 60

The Government files the draft settlement law of the previous year with the Bureau of the National Council of the Transition during the first ordinary session, and at the latest by the month of May.

Article 61

In areas related to their mandates, members of the Government can be heard by the National Council of the Transition through oral or written questions put to them by National Councilors. These sessions of government questions shall not give rise to a vote.

Article 62

Matters others than those that fall within the legislative remit fall within the regulatory remit.

Article 63

The National Council of the Transition meets once per semester during ordinary sessions for a period of three (3) months, after having been invited to do so by the President.

In case of emergency, the National Council of the Transition will convene in extraordinary session, the agenda having been set by the Head of State of the Transition or by the National Council of the Transition through an absolute majority vote of existing members. The extraordinary session will be closed as soon as the agenda has been worked through.

Extraordinary sessions of the National Council of the Transition are opened and closed by Decree taken in the Council of Ministers.

Article 64

The rules of procedure of the National Council of the Transition, adopted according to the organic laws procedure, will determine the system of incompatibilities, immunities, conditions and procedures of vote and indemnities for National Councilors. It will set out the conditions of their replacement in case a vacancy should arise. It will come into force after having been declared compliant with the Constitutional Charter of the Transition by the Constitutional Court of the Transition.