By Alpha Abu
The Government and the main opposition All People’s Congress have both reaffirmed their commitment to work together in addressing electoral reforms in the country after a brief stalemate within the Tripartite Committee -established to address long-standing irregularities in the electoral process.
This follows a meeting between the committee members and President Julius Maada Bio in Freetown yesterday.
It was acknowledged that the committee that also involved international partners, had made immense progress in the last six months of deliberations “focused on elections management, institutional and legal reforms. The committee is now in the final stages of its work and is committed to completing and presenting a comprehensive report to the president of Sierra Leone’’, according to a statement by the tripartite committee released just after the meeting with President Bio. Both parties agreed to commit in strengthening inclusive democracy and national unity.
Earlier, following varied assertions and interpretations of the role of the Tripartite Committee that was to review the often acrimonious electoral concerns, the Government through the Ministry of Information and Civic Education in a Press Release made certain clarifications and singled out the main opposition All People’s Congress for communications that it says ‘’have spread misinformation’’.
Both the APC and SLPP have key representations at the tripartite committee which emanated from a resolution after an Agreement for National Unity.
According to the press release both parties were signatories to that effort “to examine and review the electoral systems, structures and processes of the 2023 and previous cycles to ensure future elections in Sierra Leone are free ,fair and credible’’.
In a related development, a multi-faceted Delegation comprising representatives from the African Union, the regional bloc ECOWAS and UNOWAS are in Sierra Leone to assess progress so far in the national unity agreement signed by the government and the APC.
The Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion is hosting the delegation and according to the commission’s Directorate of Communication, the team is being co-led by former Vice President of the Gambia Fatoumata Tambajang, UN Secretary-General Special Representative and Head of UNOWAS-Leonardo Santos Simao. The delegation has in the course of the week met with officials of the APC at the party’s Secretariat and also held discussions with SLPP officials including Chief Minister Dr. David Sengeh, leaders of other political parties and other key stakeholders.
The delegation in a statement had urged for concerted efforts by all sides to maintain the peace, admonishing that partisan interests should not supersede the general peace and stability of the country.
Copyright © 2024 Politico (20/06/24)
