Waiting in anticipation

With various observer groups promising Sierra Leoneans that they will be keeping watchful eyes on the electoral process, it is possible that the outcome of the presidential contest between the two major parties in the country could turn out to be quite interesting, writes Winston Ojukutu-Macaulay Jnr

DR SAMURA Mathew Wilson

Kamara was not supposed to have qualified, let alone to have been allowed, to contest for the

All People’s Congress (APC) presidential ticket in Sierra Leone. However, Kamara stubbornly pursued his goal; and in February, he was given the go-ahead to represent the party in the June 2023 presidential election.

Kamara had sent a clear message to his opponents that to get to the top of politics, one must have an immense sense of destiny. And if a straw poll is to be believed, the APC could even win a massive victory.

In 2018, Julius Maada Bio of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) won 51.8 per cent of a total of over 2.5 million votes cast, defeating Karama, who got 48.1 per cent. As the two men do battle again for the highest office in the country, voters are witnessing a total reversal of political fortunes.

In 2018, under former President Ernest Bai Koroma, many Sierra Leoneans and the country's development partners accused his APC government of corruption and mismanagement of the country's natural resources, taxpayers' money, and foreign aid. These accusations were marshalled and used by the SLPP, then in opposition, to mount a successful election campaign against Kamara.

Five years later, Bio’s administration is facing similar accusations of corruption, mismanagement of the country's economy, gross human rights abuses, the suppression of citizens' rights and persecution of political opponents and certain sections of the local media.

In the face of this storm, the Bio government now has to deal with the accusation of daring attempts to commit extensive electoral fraud. There have been disputes over the procurement and supply of electoral material, including voter registration and identity cards.

In April, when the cards were being collected, voters complained that the documents were poorly printed without proper security features. Many were not happy with their photos in which they could not be clearly identified; something that could lead to problems at polling stations.

The general impression is that the entire electoral process is not being properly managed. Not surprisingly, many Sierra Leoneans have expressed concern that the country is heading for an acrimonious period after the elections. But, again, many are hoping that things would not get out of hand.

This assurance is born out of the past-the-post system that was in place.

“I think it is a grave situation. And this Parliament must send a fact-finding mission to Sierra Leone to investigate this major violation,” Snowe said.

“This is not the first time. It is not the second time. It is the third time. The second issue in Sierra Leone is less than a year before the elections, Sierra Leone is trying to change electoral laws.

“They are still trying to change the electoral laws in favour of the ruling SLPP government. I think it is quite alarming, and the Sierra Leone delegation needs to speak here,” Snowe added.

Nevertheless, proportional representation it is against the wishes of most Sierra Leoneans. But there is hope that with huge teams of international election observers from ECOWAS, the European Union and the US, things might go smoothly massive interest in the elections of Sierra Leone's regional and international development partners in recent months. During one of its session last December, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament deplored the Sierra Leone government's decision to change electoral laws one year before the presidential and parliamentary elections.

Speaking to the media in Freetown at the beginning of May, the High Representative of the European Union, Josep Borrell, said: “Over the last 21 years, Sierra Leoneans have built a hard-won peace. The forthcoming elections will be crucial for the country's future and the West Africa region.

Liberian ECOWAS parliamentarian Edwin Snowe was not pleased with the way things were going in Sierra Leone in respect of legislation relating to the elections, including the introduction of proportional representation for the parliamentary election instead of the first-

“With the deployment of an Electoral Observation Mission for the fifth time, the EU confirms its long-term commitment to supporting competitive, transparent and peaceful elections in Sierra Leone.”

He said that the EU team “will provide an independent, evidence-based assessment of the electoral process, and its final report will be an important contribution to Sierra Leone's efforts and aspirations to strengthening its democracy”.

With the various observer groups promising Sierra Leoneans that they will be keeping watchful eyes on the electoral process, it is possible that the outcome of the contest between Bio and Kamara, representing the two major parties in the country, could turn out to be quite interesting.