Post a comment 
President Dr Julius Maada Bio has dismissed claims that the ongoing constitutional review is intended to extend his stay in office, maintaining that the exercise is aimed at completing a national reform process initiated by previous administrations.
Speaking during the Presidential Town Hall Meeting in Makeni, the President said the review is designed to modernise Sierra Leone’s Constitution and strengthen democratic governance rather than serve any personal political interest.
President Bio explained that constitutional reform did not begin under his administration. He noted that former President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah launched the process through the Peter Tucker Constitutional Review Commission, while former President Dr Ernest Bai Koroma advanced it through the Justice Edmund Cowan Constitutional Review Committee.
According to the President, both initiatives produced important recommendations following nationwide consultations, but the reform process was never fully completed.
“I am not amending the Constitution because I want to continue staying in power,” President Bio said. “Former President Kabbah, through the Peter Tucker Commission, undertook a major constitutional review, and former President Koroma also continued the process through the Justice Cowan Commission. I am here to complete what my predecessors started.”
He stressed that the constitutional review is a national undertaking intended to strengthen governance, democracy and the rule of law, urging Sierra Leoneans to view the process as a collective effort to improve the country’s legal and governance framework.
The President also reaffirmed his government’s commitment to an inclusive and transparent review process that reflects the aspirations of the people and responds to emerging governance challenges.
The constitutional review has attracted public debate, with some stakeholders expressing concerns over proposed amendments. However, the government maintains that the process is focused on producing a modern Constitution built on recommendations from previous review commissions and aligned with Sierra Leone’s evolving democratic and governance needs.
