By Prince J Musa in Kenema
As a way of getting the views of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) and youth groups and women in the Eastern region, the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone (ECSL) in collaboration with the Institute for Democratic Electoral Assistance (IDEA) has ended a day’s engagement to evaluate the work of the commission on electoral inclusion.
In his opening statement during the programme at the Kenema District council hall on the 24th July, 2024, the District Elections Manager of ECSL Thomas Tamba Taylor said that the ECSL is a democratic institution that has the responsibility to conduct all public elections with credibility, and that the inclusivity project was able to create accessibility for PWDs getting them involved in all electioneering activities during the 2023 multi-tier polls.
He said the commission has bridged the gap experienced in the past to ensure that they become part of the process. He said ECSL has even recruited PWDs to be ward coordinators.
Chief Electoral Commissioner, Mohamed K. Konneh in his statement commended various groups for working with the commission since 2022 to date in ensuring that the elections were conducted peacefully. He said the commission wants to strengthen its relationship with different sectors as democratic process is not a one off thing but should continue.
He emphasized that it was necessary they started with women’s groups as the data captured more women registrants in the past elections than men. He added that the engagement is part of preparations to develop the next electoral cycle through those inputs and issues identified by the participants at the event.
He outlined the efforts made by the commission in increasing women participation in governance by electing more women in parliament and local councils using the 2022 election Act, especially the provisions made in the Act which states that for every three candidates, women should be included into the list from political parties.
In her statement, Commissioner Zainab Umu Moseray informed the gathering that the ECSL brought the groups together to see how they work with the commission and to ascertain whether the commission worked with them well and to look at lapses.
She added that the platform was also to provide the opportunity for various groups, especially women, to know what they may want to see ECSL do for them.
IDEA’s Programme Officer, Mawusi Dumenu in his address said as a worldwide pro-democracy body, they began working in Sierra Leone in 2023 supporting institutions such as ECSL, Political Parties Regulation Commission (PPRC), Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Human rights Commission, Independent Media Commission (IMC), National Council for Civic Education and Development (NaCCeD) among others, around the tenets of democratic process.
He added that IDEA has been supporting the commission to establish the youth groups and other stakeholders’ engagement by sharing knowledge about electoral processes. He also said that the institute has supported the commission on elections risk management to help them identify issues and be able to respond to them.
He said the engagement was to reflect on how the elections were held, get feedback to the commission so that they can be included in the strategic plan of ECSL for the next five years. He affirmed their support for democracy in Sierra Leone.
Copyright © 2024 Politico (29/07/24)
