By Ragan M. Conteh
Opposition Members of Parliament have planned to unanimously reject any renewal of President Julius Maada Bio’s State of Emergency (SoE) due to the blatant failure of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to table Regulations in Parliament as earlier agreed during the approval of the SoE.
The SoE, according to the 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone, expires after 90 days and after the 90 days period, the Government, through the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, will submit Regulations that give powers to the Emergency.
During the approval of the SoE on 25th March 2020, the opposition MPs expressed grave fear over the misuse of the SoE by the state security forces.
The lawmakers lamented that a “State of Emergency has no powers without Regulations” and that the failure of Government to submit the Emergency Regulations have prompted them to back out in any plan by the Attorney General for an emergency renewal.
It could be recalled that the opposition MPs had earlier reported in Parliament the misuse of the SoE in many parts of the country, citing the arrests of political opponents by the state security apparatuses, which have been largely considered as a case study for their stance against any renewal of the SoE.
Making his submission during the approval of the State of Emergency on 25th March 20202, the Member of Parliament representing Constituency 027, Kono District, Hon. Saa Francis Bhendu, averred that they, as opposition parties, were very much concerned about the misuse of the State of Emergency by state functionaries.
Hon. Bhendu added that the SoE is very important to help government fight the Coronavirus, but asserted that the Regulations are the guiding principles during the State of Emergency. He informed that it would render the SoE powerlessness if such Regulations are not approved.
Hon. Ibrahim Ben Kargbo also recently expressed concern about the misuse of the SoE by the security forces. He said reported cases of excessive use of force have reached them as MPs, noting that officers manning checkpoints in various parts of the country are the main culprits.
Hon. Kargbo pointed out that extortion and other unsavory activities have also been reported. This, according to him, is caused by the failure of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to table the Emergency Regulations for approval by Parliament.
The opposition MPs are also concerned about the 12 months’ timeline of the SoE as pronounced by the President. He added that Parliament urged authorities earlier to prepare Regulations and make them available within 14 days for the House’s approval but they vehemently failed to do so.
The Leader of National Grand Coalition (NGC), Hon. Kandeh Kolleh Yumkella, who moved the motion for the Government to present the State of Emergency Regulations within 14 days, stated no MP denounced the SoE proclaimed by President Julius Maada Bio but ‘due procedure’ must be followed strictly.
According to Hon. Dr. Yumkella, Section 29 (10) of the 1991 Constitution stipulates that a State of Emergency shall expire within 90 days and after that period, Parliament shall assess the emergency and its possible extension after that period.
Hon Dr. Yumkella was also concerned about the arbitrary use of the SoE on opposition parties, which he said was a legitimate concern. He disclosed that Regulations are substantive in the SoE and that, through consultations with various leaders across the board, irrespective of the mix feelings by opposition MPs, the SoE proclaimed by the President was gracefully and unanimously approved in Parliament.
The Opposition Leader in Parliament, Hon. Chernoh Ramadan Maju Bah, submitted that there has been much misinformation from the general public about the pronouncement of President Bio’s SoE.
Hon. Maju Bah argued that declaring a State of Emergency is not like passing any ordinary law, adding that the Emergency should not be used to oppress or witch-hunt political opponents, which he said was now visible.
He urged authorities in governance to caution the state security forces not to misuse the SoE, adding that they should not use it to intimidate members of the opposition or the public to score political points.
In his statement, the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) Member of Parliament, Hon. Mohamed Sidi Tunis, who is also the new Speaker of ECOWAS Parliament, assured lawmakers that apart from the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, nobody will use the SoE to arrest or intimidate any political opponents.
He urged the various political leaders that it is about time they provided leadership to contain the pandemic in the country.
The Deputy Minister of Justice, Umaru Napoleon Koroma, assured the lawmakers that the SoE proclaimed by the President is only used as a measure to prevent the COVID-19 pandemic from spreading, adding that Regulations will be formulated by Government for parliamentary approval.
The Deputy Minister assured that nobody will use the SoE to score political points other than to curtail the COVID-19 in the country.
Many MPs however expressed disappointment with the deliberate failure of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to prepare Emergency Regulations and table them in the august body for approval. They therefore resolved that the SoE will not be renewed because of the snobbish attitude of the Minister.