As the opposition All People’s Congress (APC) continue to resist participating in all governance structures in Sierra Leone, opinions from members of the public have it that the Constitution of Sierra Leone does not in any way permit the House of Parliament to operate in a one party system, and may therefore dissolve soon.
It can be recalled that both local and internal players stood their ground that the 2023 general elections were marred in fraud and inconsistencies in the tallying process.
They also described the elections as “a fraud” and have called for prompt investigations.
The All People’s Congress -APC 2023 flagbearer, Dr Samura Matthew Wilson Kamara has also stood his ground that the 2023 general elections were, just as the observers had said, marred in fraud and inconsistencies.
Dr Kamara has also said democracy is under serious threat especially so when ‘people’s vote were not and never counted in the just controversially announced elections results’.
‘Lack of transparency and accountability as regards to elections makes our democracy very fragile in Sierra Leone. The people voted but their voices and decisions did not represent the outcome of result that was announced by the elections commission’, one of the APC stalwarts said.
According to Dr Kamara in the face of such deliberate institutional failure and daylight fraud, some ‘men of God’ and others are busy running around, desperately preaching peace.
He also expressed frustration, not only with the Electoral Commission but also with individuals he believes were complicit in the elections fraud.
The Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) Speaker of Parliament, Dr Chernor Abass Bundu has also informed Members of Parliament from the SLPP and the Paramount Chief Members of Parliament that in the 1991 Constitution it is proclaimed: ‘This country shall never again return to the abomination of the one-party system’.
According to Dr Chernor Bundu, ‘Every citizen is enjoined to participate in and defend all democratic processes and practices and render assistance to appropriate and lawful agencies in the maintenance of law and order’.
He went further that, ‘That Constitution eschewed the one-party system of government that had governed the country since 1978 and reintroduced a multiparty democratic system as the only legal and acceptable polity that must prevail in this country and be held sacred by the entire citizenry’.
Dr Bundu also informed that if the APC failed to take their seats in Parliament the result could be devastating and detrimental to the country as a whole as well as to their democratic polity. ‘Under their watch and leadership, this country promulgated the extant Constitution in October 1991’, he reminded.
The main question Sierra Leoneans continue to ask is that, since the 1991 Constitution clearly discarded the one party regime, now that the APC has refused to take their seats in Parliament due to elections concerns, what will be the fate of the Sixth (6th) Parliament in the coming months.
Others say based on the submissions of Dr Abass Bundu who was one of the drafters of the 1991 Constitution, ‘the House of Laws may soon dissolve’.
Citizens say as it stands ‘the SLPP government is busy appointing, interviewing and approving ministers and other public servants within themselves’.
According to them, the opposition’s refusal and failure to participate in governance including the local councils would deter democracy and result to a one party regime that the Constitution of Sierra Leone loathes.
Other prominent Sierra Leoneans have said that the only solution to this problem is to urge the ECSL to release the data requested by international community and the opposition, or dissolve Parliament to allow fair play.
‘Sierra Leone has gone far from a one party system and people should ensure that they adhere to the electorate’s will. We are not going to continue with one political party to operate without critical voices’, one of the good citizens said.
They said the 1991 Law Book frowns at the one-party system of governance, ‘and all should adhere to the Book because it is the grundnorm’.
They repeatedly called for the single party government to ‘dissolve Parliament, stop approving ministers and allow the will of the masses to prevail’.