By Bampia James Bundu
Country director of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) has expressed disappointment at the “weak state” of the main opposition Sierra Leone People’s Party. Joe Pemagbi was speaking at the opening of a two-day civil society seminar in Freetown organised by Center for the Coordination of Youth Activities. Pemagbi said that one of the major problems facing the country was that citizens did not have the power to question the activities of the government. “The main opposition party, which is expected to provide alternative for the people, is in disarray,” he lamented, stating that being in the opposition was not only to critique the government negatively but to present some alternative governance systems. “We need a formidable opposition in the country to articulate the affairs of the masses. One that will hold the government accountable on what they say or do,” he urged. Pemagbie called on opposition parties to act responsibly and perform the responsibilities expected of them rather than allowing the government to have a field day. He commended CCYA for organising the seminar not only for the youth but also for various stakeholders so that they could be adequately educated on election management issues by the election management bodies like National Electoral Commission, Political Parties’ Registration Commission, Sierra Leone Police, Office of National Security and the media. Senior programme officer of CCYA, Henry Allieu, said accountability was an important aspect of election integrity. “Elections are, after all, the means by which citizens hold their elected officials accountable,” he said, adding that electoral administration and policy makers were accountable for the types of electoral processes they designed and administered. Allieu said that the main goal of the seminar, on promoting inclusive and participatory process at local and national levels through accountable institutions, was to enhance the knowledge base of youth in electoral accountability and justice and capacitate them for civic engagement. He said that there was need to discuss the Citizens’ Situation Room, the Accra principles of electoral justice and the Public Elections Act 2012 in Sierra Leone in a bid to advocate for electoral legal reforms. Outreach officer, NEC, Albert Massaquoi, lauded CCYA for providing a forum that looked at youth participation and did a reflection of the 2012 election process. He explained that their role was to conduct all public elections in the country, and to ensure that the processes were transparent and credible. He said that they were doing all they could to make the commission resourceful and effective in their conduct and management of elections in the country. (C) Politico 05/09/13
