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The Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL) is not in any way prepared to change the voting system for the upcoming 2023 parliamentary election, according to a prominent All Peoples Congress (APC) member named Lawyer Ahmed Sesay.
Lawyer Sesay claims that the APC has petitioned the Supreme Court for guidance on how to interpret the 1991 Constitution because the ECSL is determined to implement the PR system. He adds that by January 9, 2023, the Supreme Court is anticipated to decide whether or not to do so.
Remember that JFK and Partners filed an Originating Notice of Motion claiming that the “Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL), using the Proportional Representation (PR) system to select ordinary Members of Parliament, where there are existing and subsisting constituencies, is inconsistent with Section 38A of constitutional Amendment Act No 15 of 2001.”
According to Dr. Abdulai O. Conteh Esq., “Proportional Representation” is a byproduct of its period. When there are no wards or constituencies for the country’s public elections, it is a full-back position. This was the justification and the situation at the time that made the change introduced in 2001, which is now contained in Section 38A of the Constitution.
The nation had just seen a horrific and destabilizing rebel invasion that had caused widespread community destabilization in addition to the loss of life and destruction of property. The absence of established towns and constituencies was one of the early effects of such a circumstance, which provided the reason for the establishment of the proportional representation system. At the time, it was considered a backup plan and was not meant to be the standard procedure for public or general elections for Parliament.”
