Next Monday, according to reliable sources, is judgment day for Sierra Leone’s two main political parties over a disagreement on key recommendations of the Tripartite Committee.
The ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) claimed to have won the June 24, 2023 election, a move that has been contradicted by the opposition, All People’s Congress (APC) as it similarly claimed an election victory.
Reliable sources however stated that the opposition party has backed its claims with concrete evidence while the ruling party is yet to do so although much time has been given to them.
The much-expected judgment will be a landmark and will determine how Sierra Leone would look like in years to come.
A retired judge, Kate Sullivan who heads the Secretariat of the Tripartite Committee, will hand down the judgment that many hope will take Sierra Leone out of the political quagmire.
The disagreement between the two sides, SLPP and APC hinges on key recommendations on results examination and electoral justice in respect of the June polls which is still an unfinished business for the people of Sierra Leone and the international community.
The judgment is also expected to show the actual winner of the June elections, a move seen as the only way to end the long-running post-election stalemate.
Preliminary findings by the Tripartite Committee indicate that the opposition leader, Dr Samura Kamara reportedly scored 57.15 percent of the total votes according to results reconciliation forms submitted by the APC while the incumbent, Maada Bio got slightly above 39%.
Consequently, the opposition leader, Kamara has submitted that either President Bio steps aside or a rerun is held without the Chief Electoral Commissioner, Mohamed Konneh and his team.
It could be difficult for President Bio to give up power at this critical moment, but a rerun of the election is a sure option for peace and stability and will offer a golden opportunity for PAOPAs to launder their image again.
If the judge endorses the submission for a rerun, a fresh team of expatriate election commissioners would conduct the polls as the opposition leader hopes to make impressive inroads again.
President Bio too has made it clear that he would defeat Samura Kamara even if the election is held five times. The battle line has been drawn for the two political giants to show their weight.
However, the figure shown at the Tripartite Committee is at complete variance with those announced by the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL), an institution mandated by law to conduct and supervise public elections and referenda in Sierra Leone.
It announced in June, last year that President Bio got 56.17 percent of the votes leaving 37.83 percent for the opposition leader, a move that resulted into a boycott of parliament and local councils across the country.
The discrepancies of the percentage of the results are also a contentious issue among members of the public and socio-political analysts.
According to the constitution of Sierra Leone, 1991 and the Public Elections Act, 2022 only ECSL has the legal mandate to announce officials results and aggrieved parties may seek redress in the courts.
However, the results were never challenged in the courts as they were neither published in the ECSL website nor in the Sierra Leone Gazette.
The fear that the scales of justice would be tilted in favour of the party in power also played great role in keeping APC away from the courts.
The Tripartite Committee, a body that came into being after a peace dialogue between the two sides, is tasked to investigate alleged irregularities of the June 24, 2023 elections.
Resolution-3 of the October communiqué provides for the mandate of the Tripartite Committee as it states that “…The President shall, in consultation with the APC party, constitute a cross-party Committee on Electoral Systems and Management Bodies Review…to examine the electoral systems, structures and processes of the 2023 multi-tier electoral cycle.” Apart from expatriate election investigators, the committee is tripartite consisting of seven members each from the SLPP, APC and Development partners.
The declaration of the incumbent, President Julius Maada Bio winner of the elections has been one of the most controversial issues in Sierra Leone’s recent past, a situation that warranted the formation of an election body.
Although the Australian judge has shown neutrality since her appointment few months back, there has been a loud hue and cry from the opposition camp about the imminent judgment fearing that it might not favour them.
They have constantly called on the judge to display fair play in the investigation and not to succumb to any pressure from outside.
Pressure from the opposition came after suspicion that the United States Ambassador, David Bryan Hunt wanted to take sides with the ruling party so that President Bio could be allowed to complete his remaining four years. The US diplomat was also similarly accused of mobilising other members of the international community to stand with the Bio regime although its election victory is subject for contention and endless debates among the public, academic and legal circles.
The UK High Commissioner, Lisa Chesney and the EU Ambassador, Manuel Muller were said to have been key targets for the messages by David Hunt to ensure a turn around after many years of struggle.
The UK diplomat also had it hot with the people of Sierra Leone particularly writers and media practitioners when she paid a courtesy call on the Foreign Affairs Minister, Timothy Kabba also former Mines Minister. The courtesy visit came at the peak of the election controversy that showed no sign of receding.
A renowned journalist, Kabs Kanu also lashed at the British diplomat for falling for government’s cheap baits of electoral reforms.
Chesney was also hit hard because her country, UK played a lead role in bringing Bio to power in 2018 hiding behind the cloak of regime change although SLPP’s election victory in 2018 was also in big doubt.
According to Kemo Sesay, a former minister and senior APC politician, Samura Kamara won the 2018 polls but the international community convinced him and former President, Ernest Bai Koroma in seeing a need for political transition after 11 years in power.
It could also be the same game plan this time as David Hunt, according to the allegations, wanted the ruling party to continue in power although they did not win the election.
The suspicion became strong and reasonable, few months ago, when the David Hunt publicly declared that there would be no rerun of the June elections since APC failed to make their election petition heard in the court.
The Ambassador’s statement caused panic and pandemonium in the opposition camp as the people were about to take to the streets to start it right from there.
The threats to peace was however neutralised by the opposition leader who held a brief meeting with the US Ambassador although the outcome remained a closely guarded secret.
The statement was also seen by many Sierra Leoneans and members of the international community as a complete undermine of the election probe on which the peace and security of Sierra Leone anchors.
The declaration by the US diplomat marked a big merry and carol for the other side of the political divide.
It plunged SLPP members and supporters into an ecstatic frenzy that created an impression that they had been backed by the United States, the world’s main custodian and protector of democracy.
Government’s lead negotiator, Chief Minister, David Moinina Sengeh was spotted dancing in a pub celebrating the US Ambassador’s declaration of no rerun. They gave no thought to the fact that the American Ambassador did not lose sight of several options of fresh election or the declarations of Samura Kamara as President if the election boss failed to substantiate his claims.
However, the EU Ambassador, Manuel Muller refuse to be influenced by anyone as he still maintains his stance of ensuring that the election is free, fair and credible. Before 2023 election, Ambassador Muller assured Sierra Leoneans that their votes would be protected and the last vote counted.
Allegations against key diplomats in Sierra Leone took many Sierra Leoneans aback owing to frantic effort initially made by the Brits and the Americans to ensure fair play before the elections and to restore democracy after the stolen votes.
Sierra Leoneans saw first-hand how members of the diplomatic community spent the night in a booth located in a remote community in Tonkolili district to ensure that a parliamentary bye-election is honest and transparent.
The question of why are they supporting an “illegitimate government” is one of the most frequently asked, but, the Judge, Kate Sullivan is sure to provide the answer.