By Alusine Fullah
The European Union Election Observer Mission in Sierra Leone has presented its final report on the June 24 general elections to President Julius Maada Bio.
The report notes inconsistencies in the electoral process, highlighting lack of transparency during critical stages, particularly in the tabulation and announcement of results, which the report asserts eroded voters’ trust in the election’s credibility.
This alleged lack of transparency was raised by the opposition All People’s Congress (APC) which has since the announcement of the result refused to participate in governance.
‘’The 2023 general elections unfolded in a highly polarized and volatile socio-political environment. In a positive development, these elections were preceded by newly introduced electoral legislation, which included the gender quota for candidates’ lists. However, there was a lack of transparency and timely communication from the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL) on electoral preparedness. At the start of the campaign, freedom of movement, assembly and expression were largely respected, yet closer to Election Day, localized, politically motivated attacks, and disproportional use of force by security agencies in some cases, shrank the space of political participation in several districts. Divisive content, circulating on social media, fuelled discord. Media debates in all districts helped voters to make an informed choice, but a national presidential debate did not happen. Civil society was key to rising voters’ awareness,’’ a section of the report noted.
‘’The ECSL appeared operationally prepared, but delays and omissions in the delivery of sensitive materials occurred on Election Day. Training of temporary election staff on Election Day proceedings was overall positively assessed by the EU EOM observers. However, procedures for tallying and results management came late, clouding prospects of a transparent tabulation and results process.On Election Day, all but two polling stations observed by EU EOM opened late, due to the late reception of essential and sensitive material, and in several instances also due to the lack of preparedness of, or absent, polling staff. Voting was conducted in a peaceful atmosphere in most of the country. Intimidation and violent incidents were reported by police, media, citizen and international observers in six districts, with live ammunition being fired in Port Loko, Freetown and Koinadugu, creating insecurities for voters and poll workers alike The EU EOM directly observed violence and unrest inside seven polling stations during voting and in three, during the closing and counting.On election day the ECSL held one press conference, during which reasons for late delivery of materials were not properly explained. Reception of materials and early stages of tabulation were assessed by EU EOM observers as lacking transparency Unrest and turbulences were directly witnessed by EU EOM observers in tally centers in Port Loko, Freetown and Makeni. The EU EOM is continuing its observation of the ongoing tabulation.The electoral legal framework lays a sound basis for conducting democratic elections. Recent legal reforms, following broad stakeholder consultations, implemented a number of EU EOM recommendations, and included affirmative action to ensure gender equality, as well as strengthen financial autonomy of the ECSL. The proportional district representation system was introduced without a public debate, and sparse civic education left many voters unsure about how their votes will translate into parliamentary and local council seats,’’ the section of the report furthered.
‘’Overall, stakeholders expressed low trust in law enforcement bodies due to alleged biased behavior. Arrests of party supporters and prolonged detentions beyond the constitutional deadline that fall below regional and international standards, were reported to EU EOM throughout the campaign period,’’ a summarized version of the report cited.
Copy right –Printed in the Expo Times Week end Newspaper on Friday 13th October, 2023 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
