Rule 60 - Right to Vote

Each member of the Commission shall have one vote. In the case of equal number of votes the Chairman shall have a casting vote.

Rule 61 - Asking for a Vote

A proposal or a motion submitted for the decision of the Commission shall be put to the vote if a member so requests. If no member asks for a vote, the Commission may adopt a proposal or a motion without a vote.

1. Except as otherwise provided by the Charter or other Rules of the present Rules of Procedure, decisions of the Commission shall be taken by a simple majority of the members present and voting.

2. For the purpose of the present Rules of Procedure, the expression "members present and voting" shall mean members voting for or against. The members who shall abstain from voting shall be considered as non-voting members.

3. Decisions may be taken by consensus, failing which, Commission shall resort to voting. Rule

63 - Method of Voting

1. Subject to the provisions of Rule 68, the commission, unless it otherwise decides, shall normally vote by show of hands, but any member may request the roll-call vote, which shall be taken in the alphabetical order of the names of the members of the Commission beginning with the member whose name is drawn by lot by the Chairman. In all the votes by roll-call each member shall reply "yes", "no" or "abstention". The Commission may decide to hold a secret ballot.

2. In case of vote by roll-call, the vote of each member participating in the ballot shall be recorded in the minutes.

Rule 64 - Explanation of Vote

Members may make brief statements for the only purpose of explaining their vote, before the beginning of the vote or once the vote has been taken. The member who is the sponsor of a proposal or a motion cannot explain his vote on that proposal or notion except if it has been amended.

Rule 65 - Rules to be observed while voting

A ballot shall not be interrupted except if a member raises a point of order relating to manner in which the ballot is held. The Chairman may allow members to intervene briefly, whether before the ballot beginning or when it is closed, but solely to explain their vote.

Rule 66 - Division of Proposals and Amendments

Proposals and amendments may be separated if requested. The parts of the proposals or of the amendments which have been adopted shall later be put to the vote as a whole; if all the operative parts of a proposal have been rejected, the proposal shall be considered to have been rejected as a whole.

Rule 67 - Amendment

An amendment to a proposal is an addition to, deletion from or revision of part of that proposal.

Rule 68 - Order of Vote on amendments

When an amendment is moved to a proposal, the amendment shall be voted on first.

When two or more amendments are moved to a proposal, the Commission shall first vote on the amendment furthest removed in substance from the original proposal and then on the amendment next furthest removed therefrom and so on until all the amendments have been put to the vote. Nevertheless when the adoption of an amendment implies the rejection of another amendment, the latter shall not be put to the vote. If one or several amendments are adopted, the amended proposal shall then be put to the vote.

Rule 69 - Order of Vote on the Proposals

1. If two or more proposals are made on the same matter, the Commission, unless it decides otherwise, shall vote on these proposals in the order in which they were submitted.

2. After each vote the Commission may decide whether it shall put the next proposal to the vote.

3. However, the motions which are not on the substance of the proposals shall be voted upon before the said proposals.

Rule 70 - Elections

Elections shall be held by secret ballot unless the election is for a post for which only one candidate has been proposed and that candidate has been agreed upon by the members of the Commission.

Chapter XII - Participation of Non-members of the Commission

Rule 71 - Participation of States in the deliberations

1. The Commission or its subsidiary bodies may invite any State to participate in the discussion of any issue that shall be of particular interest to that State.

2. A State thus invited shall have no voting right, but may submit proposals which may be put to the vote at the request of any member of the Commission or of the subsidiary body concerned.

Rule 72 - Participation of other Persons or Organisations

The Commission may invite any organisation or persons capable of enlightening it to participate in its deliberations without voting rights.

Rule 73 - Participation of Specialised Institutions and Consultation with the latter

1. Pursuant to the agreements concluded between the Organisation of African Unity and the Specialised Institutions, the latter shall have the right to:

a) Be represented in the public sessions of the Commission and its subsidiary bodies;
b) Participate, without voting rights, through their representatives in deliberations on issues which shall be of interest to them and to submit, on these issues, proposals which may be put to vote at the request of any member of the Commission or the interested subsidiary body.

2. Before placing on the provisional agenda an issues submitted by a Specialised Institution, the Secretary General should initiate such preliminary consultations as may be necessary, with this institution.

3. When an issue proposed for inclusion in the provisional agenda of a session, or which has been added to the agenda of a session pursuant to Rule 5 of the present Rules of Procedure, contains a proposal requesting the Organisation of African Unity to undertake additional activities relating to issues concerning directly one or more specialised institutions, the Secretary General should enter in to consultation with the institutions concerned and inform the Commission of the ways and means of ensuring coordinated utilisation of the resources of the various institutions.

4. When at a meeting of the Commission, a proposal calling upon the Organisation of African Unity to undertake additional activities relating to issues directly concerning one or several specialised institutions, the Secretary General, after consulting as far as possible, the representatives of the interested institutions, should draw the attention of the Commission to the effects of that proposal.

5. Before taking a decision on the proposals mentioned above, the Commission shall make sure that the institutions concerned have been duly consulted.

Rule 74 - Participation of other Inter-Governmental Organisations

1. The Secretary shall inform, not later that 4 weeks before a session, non-governmental organisations with observer status of the days and agenda of a forthcoming session.

2. Representatives of Inter-Governmental Organisations to which the Organisation of African Unity has granted permanent observer status and other Organisations recognised by the Commission, may participate, without voting rights, in the deliberations of the Commission on issues falling within the framework of the activities of these organisations.