Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05NDJAMENA1875
2005-12-29 18:07:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Ndjamena
Cable title:  

CHAD ASSEMBLY AMENDS OIL LAW;BILL AWAITS

Tags:  CD ECON EFIN ENRG EPET PGOV 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

291807Z Dec 05


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FM AMEMBASSY NDJAMENA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2846
INFO AMEMBASSY ABUJA 
AMEMBASSY DAKAR 
AMEMBASSY LIBREVILLE 
AMEMBASSY LONDON 
AMEMBASSY NIAMEY 
AMEMBASSY PARIS 
AMEMBASSY YAOUNDE 
DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
USDOC WASHDC
DOE WASHDC
UNCLAS NDJAMENA 001875 

SIPDIS


LONDON AND PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS, TREASURY FOR OTA,
ENERGY FOR GPERSON AND CGAY

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CD ECON EFIN ENRG EPET PGOV
SUBJECT: CHAD ASSEMBLY AMENDS OIL LAW;BILL AWAITS
PRESIDENT'S SIGNATURE

REF: NDJAMENA 1851 AND PREVIOUS

UNCLAS NDJAMENA 001875

SIPDIS


LONDON AND PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS, TREASURY FOR OTA,
ENERGY FOR GPERSON AND CGAY

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CD ECON EFIN ENRG EPET PGOV
SUBJECT: CHAD ASSEMBLY AMENDS OIL LAW;BILL AWAITS
PRESIDENT'S SIGNATURE

REF: NDJAMENA 1851 AND PREVIOUS


1. SUMMARY: Following a four-hour delay, the Government of
Chad-proposed legislation to amend the existing Revenue
Management Law passed resoundingly in the National Assembly
on December 29. The legislation now goes to the desk of the
Head of State for promulgation (ratification). The rapid
debate and vote by the National Assembly is not a positive
sign for the GOC's commitment to negotiations with the World
Bank. END SUMMARY

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FOLLOWING DELAY, LAW COMES TO THE FLOOR
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2. The Chadian National Assembly voted on December 29 to
ratify the Government's proposed legislation to amend the
existing Oil Revenue Management Law. The debate was
originally scheduled to take place at 10 am, but a temporary
boycott by Deputies from the Opposition, as well as confusion
on the scheduling of the debate by members of the ruling MPS
party forced a four-hour delay. After the opposition finally
agreed to enter the floor of the Assembly, the debate began
at 2 PM.

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- -
GOC, OPPOSITION PRESENT THEIR CASES; LEGISLATION EASILY
APPROVED
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- -


3. The Government of Chad (GOC),which was represented by
the Minister of Finance, Abbas Tolli, and the Minister of
Plan, Economy and Cooperation, Mahamat Hassan, presented its
case to the Deputies present on the floor. Tolli noted that
the Government had spent a great deal of time developing a
strategy to alleviate the poverty of the Chadian people, and
concluded that the passage of this legislation would give the
Government the means to aid its citizens. Tolli added that
the World Bank, which often acted as a colonial institution,
should not intervene in the country's sovereign right to
amend its own laws.


4. Lol Choua, head of the opposition "Democratic Rallying
for the People" (RDP) party, presented the opposition case,
and said that the country risked isolating itself from the
international community with the passage of this amendment.
Following his comments, the President of National Assembly
called for a vote on two pieces of legislation: the amendment
to the Revenue Management Law and legislation authorizing the
Government to collect revenues for fiscal year 2006 (NOTE:
This legislation is a critical legal mechanism to permit the
Government to began utilizing resources from the Fund for
Future Generations, should the legislation become ratified.
END NOTE). Both pieces of legislation passed resoundingly,
as 119 members voted for the legislation, 13 voted against
it, and one deputy abstained.

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NEXT STEPS
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5. In the next few days, the President of National Assembly
will send a correspondence to the Office of Presidency with
both pieces of legislation attached. Following a review and
approval by the Council of Ministers, the legislation will
reach the desk of the President. The signature of the Head
of State is required for the law to come into force.

- - - -
COMMENT
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6. While the law still needs to be promulgated by the
President, the one-day turnaround by the National Assembly --
while not entirely unexpected -- does not bode well for
proposed negotiations between the Government and the World
Bank on the revisions to the law. It is looking more and more
as if the GOC will present the revisions to the Bank as a
fait accompli, thereby forcing the bank to re-consider its


technical and political missions in January (reftel). Post
will report on the reaction of the opposition groups, the
donor community and the oil consortium in the coming days.

TAMLYN


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