Head of Benin parliament rejects calls for impeachment

The head of Benin’s parliament has rejected a request by lawmakers to impeach President Boni Yayi, saying they failed to follow procedures.

Mathurin Coffi Nago, president of the national assembly, said on Friday that the lawmakers had not followed the correct procedures, so their request had been rejected. It was not clear if they would re-launch their request.

Lawmakers had been trying to impeach Yayi over his alleged involvement in a scheme, which swindled thousands of Beninois of their savings and has already led to the sacking of a minister and large-scale street protests.

Yayi’s spokesman has previously denied the president’s involvement in the case.

So far, lawmakers, who have about 50 signatures from the 83-seat parliament, have fallen short of a two-thirds majority needed to summon the president for trial for treason and perjury.

The members of parliament accuse Yayi of hosting officials from ICC Services. The firm is accused of stealing some 100 billion CFA francs in deposits after promising returns of 20-50 percent.

IHS Global Insight senior Africa analyst Kissy Agyemen-Togobo said Benin, a stable sliver of land between Nigeria and Togo, risked political turbulence over the scandal.

Last month, more than 100,00 people took to the streets demanding that the government help them get their money back.

ICC Services officials have been put under house arrest and Yayi sacked his interior minister in July, accusing him of being directly involved in the scam.

Agyemen-Togobo warned that the current spat was on a much larger scale than standoffs over wages seen recently in Benin.

“With elections looming in 2011, domestic pressure on Boni (Yayi) is expected to rise to unprecedented levels,” Agyemen-Togobo added.

Yayi was elected in 2006 and has taken steps to liberalise the economy. He has also been popular with members of the international community.
Source: Reuters