Aman Center: The Constitutional Declaration Regarding the 'Vacancy of the Presidency' Contradicts the Principles of the Declaration of Independence and the Provisions of the Palestinian Basic Law

SadaNews - President Mahmoud Abbas issued a constitutional declaration yesterday, which stipulates that the Deputy Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Vice President of the State of Palestine, shall assume the duties of the presidency of the Palestinian National Authority in the event that the position of the President of the Palestinian National Authority becomes vacant, in the absence of the Legislative Council. The declaration states that the term of the acting president will continue for ninety days, during which free and direct elections will be held to elect a new president, according to Palestinian electoral law. If it is impossible to conduct these elections during that period due to force majeure, the term may be extended by a decision from the Palestinian Central Council only once. The new constitutional declaration also canceled the constitutional declaration No. (1) of 2024, which stipulated that the Chairman of the Palestinian National Council would assume the duties of the Presidency of the National Authority in the event of a vacancy in the position.

The amended Basic Law of 2003 clarified the structure of the Palestinian political system, outlining the role of the President of the Palestinian National Authority, how they are selected, their defined duties in an exhaustive manner, and how to fill their vacancy in case of absence or death, as stated in the second paragraph of Article 37, which stipulates: "If the position of the President of the National Authority becomes vacant in any of the aforementioned cases, the Chairman of the Palestinian Legislative Council shall assume the duties of the National Authority's presidency temporarily for a period not to exceed sixty days, during which free and direct elections shall be held to elect a new president according to Palestinian electoral law."

Despite the Integrity and Accountability Coalition (Aman) recognizing the dangers of a vacancy in this position, the president's resort to using the "constitutional declaration" is not the solution, rather it constitutes a direct contradiction and violation of the principles and rules of the Declaration of Independence and the provisions of the Palestinian Basic Law, which is considered a constitutional document in the legal system of the Palestinian National Authority. The provisions of both documents are binding on all authorities and institutions, and no constitutional declaration or law decision may surpass or contradict their texts without legitimate constitutional amendment. Furthermore, the mentioned declaration violates the basic constitution of the PLO, which constitutes a monopoly in making decisions for appointing high positions and a leniency in violating the principle of the rule of law, as constitutional declarations are typically used in countries during transitional phases, such as after revolutions or major political changes to fill the constitutional vacuum in governing the country, until a permanent constitution is established. It is then considered a temporary document that lays down the fundamental principles for organizing powers and distributing competencies in the absence of a permanent constitution.

It can be said that the president's declaration for the Vice President to assume the presidency in case of vacancy comes under the term "inheritance of authority," which refers to the process of transferring political power from the ruling person to their heirs in particular, as determined by the ruler themselves, rather than through legislation governing peaceful power transition, wherein this type of transfer and the principle used are found in governing systems that do not operate on democratic experiences for holding high positions, whether by election or appointment, which is common in royal systems, where the rule is naturally inherited among members of the ruling family.

The constitutional declaration announced directly contradicts the integrity of governance, as this governance environment provides opportunities to enhance political corruption due to the absence of one of the most important pillars of good and democratic governance, which deprives the people of their right to choose their representatives, while the issued declaration creates an environment conducive to achieving personal interests instead of serving the public interest.

The Aman Coalition believes that since the political division in 2007 and the halt of democratic mechanisms for peaceful power transition, the mechanisms for reaching governance have witnessed violations of the principles of democracy and the values of integrity in governance, especially in the realm of accessing power, whether by election or appointment, leading to a centralization of power and a weakening of governance' integrity. This has allowed the continuity of deviating from the commitment to the provisions of the rule of law in both the institutions of the Palestinian National Authority and the PLO, and the principle of separation of powers as outlined in the Basic Law and the Declaration of Independence.

The Aman Coalition, based on its responsibility to enhance the integrity of governance and combat political corruption, demands the annulment of the constitutional declaration and the holding of general presidential and legislative elections in both the West Bank and Gaza as soon as possible. The constitutional priority in the case of a vacancy in the presidency of the Palestinian National Authority does not lie in issuing a constitutional declaration that surpasses the provisions of the Basic Law, but rather in rebuilding legitimacy through urgent elections. Therefore, the correct constitutional solution lies in peaceful power transition according to the provisions of the law, reinforcing the principle of the rule of law, and restoring popular trust in governance institutions.