By Alhaji Haruna Sani
The leadership of the All Peoples Congress (APC) has in a press release drew the attention of all Sierra Leoneans and the International community to what they described as some very serious electoral malpractices that could threaten the successful conduct of the June 24 elections.
Due to the serious concerns, the release states that the party has resolved unanimously that it’s Leader and Presidential Candidate for the 2023 Presidential Elections, Dr. Samura Kamara shall be addressing the nation on Wednesday 14 June 2023 to present to the nation and the International community the party’s position and the way forward for the planned June 24 elections.
The party states that the Electoral Commissioner for Sierra Leone (ECSL) has proven to be stubborn even though the party (APC) has repeatedly drawn their attention over the repeated violation of the 1991 Constitution and relevant provisions of the Public Elections Act (PEA) of 2022.
The party went on to outline several issues surrounding the voter registration process which they said could threaten the successful conduct of the June 24 elections.
According to the APC, the Voter Registration Process disenfranchised a large number of eligible voters that are suspected of not being sympathetic to the ruling Sierra Leones’s Peoples Party (SLPP).
Poor quality Voter Identification Cards characterized by omissions, mismatches, missing photos and names, the release of an incomplete Final List of Voters (FLV) or Voters Registrar, the failure of the ECSL to complete the Voter Registration and related processes of 6 months before the scheduled elections before as provided for in section 18 of the PEA of 2022, are all among the keen concerns of the APC.
Moreover, the party said the avowed intent of the ECSL to circumvent district level certification of results in the offices of the District Elections Management as provided for in Section 92 (2) of the PEA of 20222 and the nationwide systematic and cruelly machinated attacks on and brutalization of APC supporters even on scheduled campaign days of the APC, are all recipes of chaotic electoral process.
“The un warranted unleashing of the security forces against defenseless civilians in contraventions of relevant provisions of the law.The failure of the Judiciary and the state authorities to guarantee justice for its members across the country. In the interim, we are calling on all members and supporters of the APC to remain law abiding and respect the rule of the law,” the party states.
