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A major political rift has reopened in Sierra Leone as elected officials from the main opposition All People’s Congress (APC) announced a boycott of governance, citing the government’s controversial decision to adopt a Proportional Representation (PR) electoral system.
The boycott, confirmed by Freetown Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr, centers on a dispute over how the government is handling the recommendations of the Cross-Party Tripartite Committee—a body formed to mend the political crisis following the disputed 2023 elections.
At the heart of the standoff is “Recommendation 78” of the Tripartite Report. The provision explicitly required a comprehensive national dialogue to determine the country’s future electoral framework—specifically, whether to use a constituency-based First-Past-The-Post system or a Proportional Representation (PR) system.
According to Mayor Aki-Sawyerr, the government bypassed genuine consultation. In a public statement, she noted that following what was “clearly a limited dialogue,” the government unilaterally concluded that the PR system would be adopted.
The APC argues this move not only violates the spirit of the peace agreement but directly contradicts public sentiment and independent data.
To justify the boycott, opposition leaders are pointing to a mountain of evidence suggesting that Sierra Leoneans overwhelmingly oppose the PR system. Mayor Aki-Sawyerr highlighted several key metrics:
A recent survey conducted by the Campaign for Human Rights and Development International (CHRDI) found that 68% of Sierra Leoneans actively reject the PR system.
During a massive dialogue convened by National Election Watch (NEW) involving over 150 Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), only 10.5% of participants voted in favor of PR.
Major national institutions, including the Sierra Leone Labour Congress and the Council of Churches Sierra Leone (CCSL), have released official position papers rejecting the PR model.
“Sincerity and effective implementation of the Tripartite Recommendations is required,” Mayor Aki-Sawyerr stated. “It is clear that Sierra Leoneans do not want PR.”
The government has historically argued that a Proportional Representation system—where citizens vote for a political party rather than an individual candidate, and seats are allocated based on vote share—reduces localized electoral violence and promotes national cohesion.
However, critics argue that the PR system strips power away from local voters and places it directly into the hands of political party elites in Freetown, who get to decide which individuals make it onto the party lists.
