By Saran Kabba
The Public Elections Act 2022, being an Act to repeal and replace the Public Elections Act of 2012, was passed into law on Wednesday, July 27, 2022, by the Parliament of Sierra Leone.
Hon. Chernor Ramadan Maju Bah, leader of the majority party the All Peoples Congress in the House of Parliament told newsmen that “democracy wins”.
The experienced member of the legislative arm of government said the APC is on records to have supported every bill geared towards the general good of the country, noting as representatives of the people, they can’t compromise sound reasoning and issues which border on the well-being of all Sierra Leoneans.
He was engaging journalists after the passage of the bill, which garnered huge public interest.
Hon. Bah stated that the Acts was passed into law after conscientious consultation across the aisle in tandem with the Attorney General, saying it is a common Parliamentary practice across the world.
He added that the Proportional Representation was expunged.
The most contentious area was the number of electoral commissioners to form a quorum and the National Identification Number, he added.
He explained ”collectively we were able to come together as a Parliament and remove the NIN from the voters register.
We will not make laws that will disenfranchise the people of their rights to vote.
He said they collectively removed the NIN and assured the people that the PR would not be used in the 2023 general election.
