TITLE V. OF THE LEGISLATIVE POWER
SUB-TITLE I. OF COMMON PROVISIONS
Article 107
The Parliament is composed of two Chambers: the National Assembly and the Senate.
The Parliament exercises the legislative power and controls the action of the Government.
The means of information and of control of the Parliament over the action of the Government are:
- the interpellation;
the oral question; the written question; the question of current issues; the hearing [audition] in commission; the parliamentary inquiry; the motion of censure.
Article 108
The functions of Deputy and of Senator give right to the reimbursement of transport expenses and to the payment of the indemnities.
Article 109
The mandates of Deputy and of Senator can be prolonged by the Constitutional Court referred to [the matter] by the President of the Republic, in the case of exceptionally grave circumstances impeding the normal development of the elections.
Article 110
The law determines:
- the electoral circumscriptions;
the number of seats and their division by administrative circumscription; the mode of the ballot; the conditions of organization of new elections in the case of vacancy of a seat, as well as the regime of the ineligibilities; the status [statut] of the Deputies and of the Senators.
Article 111
The candidates to the legislative or senatorial elections are presented by the political parties or by political groups.
They can also present themselves as independent candidates.
Article 112
The Deputies and the Senators loose their mandate if they are the object of a condemnation to an infamous penalty.
An elected Deputy or an [elected] Senator, presented by a political party or political group, who resigns from the party or from the political group in the course of the legislature, loses his status [qualité] of Deputy or of Senator.
Any ineligibility at the time of the elections known later [ultérieurement], as well as the incompatibilities provided for by the law, causes the loss of the mandate of Deputy or of Senator.
In the three cases, it proceeds to partial elections.
Article 113
The Constitutional Court decides, in cases of dispute, on the receivability of the candidatures and on the validity of the election of the Deputies and of the Senators.
Article 114
The right to vote of the Deputies and of the Senators is personal. The vote by proxy is authorized.
The internal regulations of the National Assembly and of the Senate, declared in accordance with the Constitution by the Constitutional Court, establish the conditions of exercise of the vote by proxy.
Article 115
The mandates of the Deputies and of the Senators commence on the second Tuesday following their election. Each Chamber of the Parliament meets of plain right. If this meeting takes place outside the periods provided for the ordinary sessions, an extraordinary session is opened of plain right for a duration of fifteen (15) days.
The mandate of the Deputies ends with the entering into [its] function of the new National Assembly. The elections take place twenty (20) days at least, and fifty (50) days at most, before the expiration of the mandate of the Deputies.
The mandate of the Senators ends with the entering into [its] function of the new Senate. The elections take place twenty (20) days at least, and fifty (50) days at most, before the expiration of the mandate of the Senators.
Article 116
It may not proceed to a partial election in the last semester of the legislature.
Article 117
The Chamber of the Parliament meets of plain right in three ordinary sessions per year on convocation its President:
- the first session opens on 15 October and terminates on 23 December;
the second session opens on 1 February and terminates on 10 April; the third session opens on 2 June and terminates on 13 August.
If 15 October, 1 February or 2 June October is a holidays [jour férié], the opening of the session takes place on the first business [ouvrable] day that follows.
Article 118
The agenda for each session is established by the conference of the Presidents.
Article 119
Each Chamber of the Parliament is convoked in extraordinary session by its President on a determined agenda, at the demand of the President of the Republic or of the absolute majority of its members. The closure intervenes when the Chamber has exhausted the agenda for which it was convoked and, at the latest, fifteen days counting from the date of the beginning of its meeting.
Article 120
The National Assembly and the Senate are each one directed by a Bureau that includes:
- a President;
two Vice-Presidents; two secretaries; two treasurers [questeurs].
Article 121
Each Chamber of the Parliament adopts internal regulations which determine its functioning, establish the legislative procedure and the modalities of control of the governmental action.
The internal regulations of each Chamber, declared conforming to the Constitution by the Constitutional Court, have [the] force of organic law.
The President of the National Assembly opens and closes the ordinary and extraordinary sessions of the National Assembly.
The President of the Senate opens and closes the ordinary and extraordinary sessions of the Senate.
Article 122
The sittings of the two Chambers of the Parliament are public.
The complete record [compte rendu intégral] of the debates is published in the journal of debates. Nevertheless, the National Assembly or the Senate can sit in closed [session], at the demand of the President of the Republic, of the President of each Chamber or of one-third of their members.
Article 123
In the case of vacancy of the Presidency of the National Assembly or of the Senate, because of death, resignation or any other cause, the concerned Chamber elects a new President within the fifteen (15) days following the vacancy if it is in session; in the contrary case, it meets of plain right within the conditions established by the internal regulations.
In the case of necessity, the other members of the Bureau are to be replaced [il est pourvu au] in conformity with the provisions of the interior regulations of each Chamber.
Article 124
The Parliament alone votes the law.
It consents to the tax, votes the budget of the State and controls its execution. It is referred to [the matter] of the bill of the law of finance at the opening of the session of October.
Article 125
[The following] are of the domain of the law:
- citizenship, the civic rights and the exercise of the public freedoms;
the constraints imposed on the citizens, on their assets and on their persons, in the interest of the national defense and of public security; nationality, the status [état] and the capacity of persons, the matrimonial regimes, inheritance and gifts; the determination of crimes, of misdemeanors [délits] and of contraventions as well as of the penalties applicable to them; the organization of justice and of the procedure to be followed before the jurisdictions, the status of the magistrature and the juridical regime of the Superior Council of the Magistrature; the organization and the rules of functioning concerning the ministerial offices and of the liberal professions; the base [l’assiette], the rate and the modalities for recovering the taxes [impositions] of any nature, the loans and the financial engagements of the State; the regime for the emission of the currency; the approval of the contracts of sharing of production of the liquid or gaseous hydrocarbons or of the other mining resources.
The law equally establishes the rules concerning:
- the reform of the State;
the creation of the public establishments; the regime of the referendum consultations; the electoral divisions; amnesty; the general status of the public function; the administrative organization of the territory; the free administration of local collectivities, their competences and their resources; the spatial organization of the territory [aménagement du territoire]; the right to work [droit du travail], the syndical right and the regimes of social security; the nationalizations and the privatizations of enterprises; the plan for economic and social development; the environment and the conservation of the natural resources and of sustainable development; the regime of property, of real rights and of civil and commercial obligations; the regime of the political parties, of the non-governmental associations and organizations; the authorization of ratification of the international treaties and agreements; the organization of the national defense and of the [national] security; the regime of [the public] domain and [of] land use; the regime of the natural resources; insurance [mutualité], savings and credit; the law [droit] and regime of transport; the law [droit] and the regime of communications and of information; the law [droit] and penitentiary regime; the laws of finances; the program laws that establishes the objectives of the economic and social action of the State, the organization of the productive activities of the State and the grand orientations of the national defense and of security.
The law determines also the fundamental principles of:
- teaching [enseignement];
health; social action; science, technology and innovation; industry; commerce; telecommunications; electricity; water; culture, arts and sports; agriculture, of animal husbandry, of fishing and the waters and forests.
Article 126
Matters other than those that are of the domain of the law have a regulatory character.
Article 127
The National Assembly and the Senate can meet in Congress at the convocation of the President of the Republic.
When the Parliament meets in Congress, the Bureau of the National Assembly presides over the debates.
An internal regulation determines the organization and the functioning of the Parliament meeting in Congress.
SUB-TITLE II. OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
Article 128
The members of the National Assembly bear the title of Deputy. They are elected by universal direct suffrage. Each Deputy elected in an electoral circumscription is the representative of the entire Nation.
Any imperative mandate is null.
Each Deputy is elected with a substitute.
Article 129
The duration of the mandate of the Deputies is of five (5) years renewable.
Article 130
No Deputy may be prosecuted, or investigated, or detained or judged, for the opinions or votes emitted by him in the exercise of his functions.
No Deputy may, during the duration of the sessions, be prosecuted or arrested without the authorization of the National Assembly, except in the case of crime or flagrante delicto, of authorized prosecutions or of definitive condemnation.
No Deputy may, outside of [the] sessions, be prosecuted or arrested without the authorization of the Bureau of the National Assembly, except in the case of flagrant delicto, of authorized prosecutions or of definitive condemnation.
Article 131
The mandate of Deputy is incompatible with any other function of public character. The other incompatibilities are established by the law.
In the case of incompatibility, the Deputy is replaced by his substitute. At the end of the incompatibility, he recovers [retrouve] his seat of plain right.
Article 132
The candidates to the elections to the National Assembly must:
- be of Congolese nationality;
be aged eighteen (18) years at least; reside on the national territory at the moment of the presentation of the candidatures; enjoy all their civil and political rights; not have been condemned for voluntary crimes or misdemeanors.
SUB-TITLE III. OF THE SENATE
Article 133
The members of the Senate bear the title of Senator. They are elected by indirect universal suffrage by the departmental and municipal councilors.
The Senators represent the local collectivities of the Republic.
The Senate exercises, in addition to its legislative function, that of moderator and of council of the Nation.
Article 134
The duration of the mandate of the Senators is of six (6) years renewable.
Article 135
No Senator may be prosecuted, or investigated, or detained or judged, for the opinions or votes emitted by him in the exercise of his functions.
No Senator may, during the duration of the sessions, be prosecuted or arrested without the authorization of the Senate, except in the case of crime or flagrante delicto, of authorized prosecutions or of definitive condemnation.
No Senator may, outside of [the] sessions, be prosecuted or arrested without the authorization of the Bureau of the Senate, except in the case of flagrant delicto, of authorized prosecutions or of definitive condemnation.
Article 136
The mandate of Senator is incompatible with any other function of public character. The other incompatibilities are established by the law.
In the case of incompatibility supervening in the course of the mandate, it proceeds to a partial senatorial election to provide for the seat [that has] become vacant.
Article 137
The candidates to the senatorial elections must:
- be of Congolese nationality;
be aged forty-five (45) years at least; reside on the national territory at the moment of the presentation of the candidatures; enjoy all their civil and political rights; not have been condemned for voluntary crimes or misdemeanors.
