Constitution-Building in Africa
The Never-Ending Story of the Making, Unmaking and Remaking of Constitutions
In: African and Asian StudiesSearch for other papers by Charles Manga Fombad in
Current site
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Constitution-building is a delicate and intricate process which requires ample reflection and careful choices. African constitution-builders and politicians have since the beginning of the 1990s embarked on a process of constitutional reforms. A careful examination of the developments of the last two decades shows that the process has almost provoked never-ending contagion of making, unmaking and remaking of constitutions. This paper attempts to provide an over-view of the changes that have been taking place. Some of the issues relating to the durability of national constitutions and theoretical foundations for constitutional change are discussed. The paper also considers some of the possible implications of the endless processes of making, unmaking and remaking constitutions. The critical question it tries to grapple with is how this unending process of constitution-building in Africa can be controlled in a manner that will ensure peace, political stability and provide a legitimate foundation for entrenching a firm culture of constitutionalism. In advocating for an entrenched permanent constitutional review commission to check against frequent and arbitrary constitutional changes, the paper argues that this is the best way for constitutional legitimacy to be sustained throughout the life of a constitution.
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4
S. Huntingdon coined the expression in, The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1991): 15-16.
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5
Charles Manga Fombad (2011): 1007-1108.
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7
Ibid., 2.
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Ibid., 2.
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16
See Charles Manga Fombad (2013), 385.
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29
Charles Manga Fombad (2008).
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
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Constitution-Building in Africa
The Never-Ending Story of the Making, Unmaking and Remaking of Constitutions
In: African and Asian StudiesSearch for other papers by Charles Manga Fombad in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Constitution-building is a delicate and intricate process which requires ample reflection and careful choices. African constitution-builders and politicians have since the beginning of the 1990s embarked on a process of constitutional reforms. A careful examination of the developments of the last two decades shows that the process has almost provoked never-ending contagion of making, unmaking and remaking of constitutions. This paper attempts to provide an over-view of the changes that have been taking place. Some of the issues relating to the durability of national constitutions and theoretical foundations for constitutional change are discussed. The paper also considers some of the possible implications of the endless processes of making, unmaking and remaking constitutions. The critical question it tries to grapple with is how this unending process of constitution-building in Africa can be controlled in a manner that will ensure peace, political stability and provide a legitimate foundation for entrenching a firm culture of constitutionalism. In advocating for an entrenched permanent constitutional review commission to check against frequent and arbitrary constitutional changes, the paper argues that this is the best way for constitutional legitimacy to be sustained throughout the life of a constitution.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 1016 | 226 | 20 |
| Full Text Views | 237 | 11 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 114 | 22 | 0 |
