A judge at the Federal First Instance Court has placed an injunction order on the Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations (AACCSA), freezing plans by President Mesenbet Shenkute and other members of senior management to hold elections during an upcoming general assembly.
Judge Gerawerk Yitbarek of the Court’s Trade and Investment Bench signed the order, which will remain in place until the Chamber’s members and management can come to an amicable solution to a dispute involving sudden changes to the organization’s election bylaws.
Chamber management, led by Mesenbet, recently called a general assembly in order to hold elections without the involvement of the Chamber’s candidate screening committee, which is a breach of the organization’s rules, according to the plaintiff.
The Chamber’s regulations state an election can only move ahead after candidates have been approved by the election credential committee. However, Mesenbet and other senior leaders recently scrapped the committee. The development came as the Chamber prepared to organize its critical but much-delayed general assembly and election.
The vote would mark the end of Mesenbet’s term at the head of the organization.
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The court case was filed by Abera Abegaz, an AACCSA board member who was barred from the organization a few weeks ago. Abera claims he was also prohibited from participating in the upcoming election via a unilateral decision made by Mesenbet.
He argues the President kicked him out for “working for the betterment of the Chamber.”
Abera subsequently took the case to court, petitioning the judiciary to suspend the general assembly and election until his board membership is reinstated. He also accused Mesenbet and other members of the Chamber’s leadership of planning to conduct an illegal election without the involvement of the credential committee.
Court documents indicate that Mesenbet revoked Abera’s board membership on the basis that he insulted her. Abera maintains the revocation is solely meant to keep him from running in the elections.
Speaking to The Reporter a few weeks ago, Mesenbet stated that her decision to suspend the credential committee ahead of the vote stemmed from an interest to accommodate licensed businesses in Addis Ababa that do not hold AACCSA membership.
The Chamber’s regulation states that only members can participate in the election process, but Mesenbet said management had decided to overlook the rule in favor of the outcome of discussions with City Trade Bureau and non-member businesses.
The decision faced strong backlash from many of the Chamber’s members. Several of them told The Reporter they believed Mesenbet was working actively to allow the City Administration to intervene in the Chamber’s internal matters.
“The management’s decision to discredit the election screening committee and to onboard non-member businesses in the election, is [meant] to create a favorable environment for people designated by the City Administration and who are members of the ruling party to be elected as the Chamber’s next president and board members,” said one member.
Over the past few weeks, woredas and sub-cities in Addis Ababa have begun establishing their own respective chamber offices.
Members of the Chamber have decried the move as illegal, and alleged it is designed to pave the way for the City Administration to rig the upcoming election by creating a new administrative structure within its own bureaucracy.
The Court has given AACSA management and Mesenbet until January 20, 2025, to submit an official written response. The judge has encouraged the parties to resolve their issues through arbitration before moving towards full litigation, giving them until January 22 to do so.
If arbitration fails, the Court will hear the case on January 31.
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