The Deputy Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General (DSRSG) for Côte d'Ivoire, Antoine Arnauld Akodjenou,on 5 August 2014, participated in the 19th edition of a brown bag lunch organised by the Security Sector Reform (SSR) Division of the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI), at the Mission's headquarters in Abidjan.





The theme of the discussion was "The role of political parties in parliamentary control of the security sector" and the guest speaker was Professor Mamadou Coulibaly, former Speaker of the Ivorian Parliament and leader of the Liberty and Democracy for the Republic (LIDER) political party.





In his opening address, Mr. Akodjenou said that the theme of the debate concerns all stakeholders in Ivorian politics and international institutions who have been mandated to accompany Côte d'Ivoire in the peace process.





Addressing the organisers of the debate, he thanked them for their initiative. "It is very important that you have not only decided to organise this debate but have also ensured that it is decentralised. I ask you to do all you can to ensure that this discussion is useful for all those involved in it," he added.





In his contribution, Mr. Koulibaly said that unfortunately parliament at this moment has no control over the security sector. He said however that the Constitution guarantees parliamentarians an oversight on decisions taken on the security sector but they have no role in the making of these decisions.





« Parliament has no means of executing the powers given to it by the Constitution," said the chairman of LIDER.





He said that in order for Parliament to fully play its role, the country must have a parliamentary system which makes the Government accountable to Parliament and is therefore obliged to take into consideration the decisions and remarks made by Parliament.





Turning to military issues, the former Speaker of the Ivorian Parliament suggested that the setting up of regional armies which will together make one army. This will have the advantage of being in position to resolve the issue of the recurrent indiscipline among soldiers and make border more efficient.





To conlcude, Mr. Mamadou Koulibaly said that the issue of security is also linked to the land ownership issues. "Most of our crises have started because of land disputes. This has to be resolved once and for all," he stressed. He said that the problem must be resolved through the relevant land administration authorities throughout Côte d'Ivoire.