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The Lawyers’ Society of Sierra Leone has raised serious constitutional concerns over Parliament’s reported passage of the Constitutional Amendment Bill 2025, arguing that the Bill was approved without securing the constitutionally required two-thirds majority.
In a press release dated 10 August 2026, the Lawyers’ Society said it was ”deeply concerned” that Parliament reportedly passed the amendment without meeting the requirement under Section 108(2)(b) of the 1991 Constitution, which requires the votes of at least two-thirds of the total membership of Parliament.
The Society stressed that Parliament, including the Speaker, is legally bound to strictly follow the procedures established by the Constitution when seeking to amend the country’s supreme law.
According to the lawyers, where the Constitution specifically requires a two-thirds majority of the total membership of Parliament, a simple majority or two-thirds of only those present and voting cannot be substituted.
The Society further pointed to an earlier ruling involving the removal of the Auditor-General, Lara Taylor-Pearce, in which the Speaker reportedly distinguished between ”two-thirds of Parliament” and ”two-thirds in Parliament.”
The Lawyers’ Society said the distinction recognised that the former refers to a constitutional threshold based on the total membership of Parliament, while the latter concerns members who are present or participate in a vote.
It expressed concern that the Speaker, having previously recognised the distinction, now appeared to have departed from that constitutional principle in relation to the amendment of the Constitution.
The Society warned that allowing a constitutional amendment to pass without the required majority could establish a dangerous precedent, potentially allowing Parliament to amend the Constitution through a procedure that the Constitution itself does not permit.
“This cannot be the standard expected in a constitutional democracy,” the Society stated, warning that disregarding constitutional requirements during the process of amending the Constitution could undermine the legitimacy of the amendment itself.
The Lawyers’ Society has consequently called on President Julius Maada Bio, the Speaker, Members of Parliament, the legal profession, civil society and the people of Sierra Leone to respect and uphold the principle that constitutional changes must only be pursued through constitutional means.
