By Abass Jalloh
The National Election Watch (NEW) has referred to as “timely proclamation” of elections dates following the announcement of dates for the Presidential and Parliamentary elections on the 14th March 2022 by the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL) which is slated for 24th June 2023.
In a press statement released on Monday 14th March 2022, the Elections Observation Group said they acknowledged the proclamation of 2023 elections date including dates for Paramount Chief Member of Parliament, and Ordinary Members of Parliament and Local Council elections which are slated for 20th May 2023 and 24th June 2023.
“New recognizes the timely proclamations of the Presidential and Parliamentary election dates as best practice to inform the citizens and as a first step towards ensuring credible, transparent and accountable electoral process,” the statement reads.
The statement noted that the Local Council election was to have been held in 2022 but by amendment of the Local Government Act, the tenure of councils was extended to merge with the Presidential and Parliamentary elections.
The statement also acknowledged the schedule for the Voter Registration which is to start from 3rd September to 4th October 2022 for the general elections in 2023 but that they believe that Voter Registration is an integral part of the election process and therefore deserves “special attention.”
“The public should thus be educated on the process clearly explaining the role of the National Civil Registration Authority (NCRA) with regards the data that the ECSL will extract to develop the Voter Register and the steps that are involved and scenarios expected at the Registration centers,” the statement reads.
The statement called for “clear definition of roles and responsibilities” for the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development and the ECSL for the conduct of the Village Head Election which is managed by the two institutions, to ensure a process that will guarantee the outcome.
NEW also urged the ECSL, the Political Parties Registration Commission (PPRC), the Government of Sierra Leone, Parliament and other stakeholders to conclude all processes six months to the dates of the elections in compliance with the ECOWAS protocol on democracy and good governance.
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