Traffic Laws and the Law Criminalising Colonisation to be Resolved on February 24

The National People’s Assembly Bureau has finalised its legislative agenda ahead of the upcoming month of Ramadan, scheduling three drafts for discussion and voting.

These include the draft on political parties, the new regional organisation law, and the settlement of the 2023 budget. A special session has also been scheduled for Tuesday, February 24th, to approve the disputed legal provisions in the laws criminalising French colonisation in Algeria and the traffic law, following a presentation by the Joint Committee on the contentious articles.

According to the agenda reviewed by Echorouk newspaper, concerning the meeting of the National People’s Assembly Bureau on Monday evening, a special session was scheduled for Tuesday, February 24, to approve the report of the Joint Committee. This report addresses the disputed provisions in the draft law criminalising French colonisation in Algeria, as well as the disputed provisions in the draft traffic law. This follows a hearing with government representatives and a review of the joint committee’s draft.

Before this session, a special session is scheduled for Sunday, February 15, dedicated to discussing the organic law relating to political parties. This law has only been allocated one day for debate. The agenda will be finalised on Monday, February 16th, with a discussion of the draft concerning the country’s regional organisation. The Council’s office aims to prioritise legislative matters and accelerate the pace of work before the start of Ramadan.

Parliamentary officials believe this program aims to finalise legislative matters before Ramadan, as members of parliament prefer to spend the first part of the month in their constituencies and attend to the interests of their constituents. This is especially important given that this session is the last of the ninth legislative term, making the remaining weeks crucial for members seeking re-election, as permitted by law.

The month of Ramadan is expected to see the scheduling of new drafts to be presented to Parliament, including the electoral law and a technical amendment to the Constitution, as well as other draft laws that the government will submit to both houses of Parliament. This puts pressure on the Council to complete its agenda before the end of the current session.

According to information obtained by Echorouk, the Council has also scheduled six special sessions to respond to oral questions before the end of its ninth term. This aims to address all concerns raised by members of parliament and complete the agenda in a balanced manner between legislation and parliamentary oversight, while also allowing sufficient time to finalise contentious articles and ensure the resolution of all outstanding issues.

It should be noted that the Bureau of the Council of the Nation voted on the list of members of the Council concerned with the Joint Committee, which is scheduled to begin its work this weekend in coordination with the Joint Committee of the lower house of Parliament, to resolve the points of contention in the laws criminalising French colonisation and traffic.

On Monday, the offices of the parliament, the National People’s Assembly and the Council of the Nation met to agree on how the joint committee would operate. The meeting of the two chambers’ offices was dedicated to setting the organisational aspects of the committee’s work, particularly regarding the date and location of the first meeting, in addition to determining the nature and composition of the committee, and the members assigned by the heads of the parliamentary blocs to represent the National People’s Assembly.