By Allieu Sahid Tunkara
The Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) has published the first draft of its report for public vetting.
The CRC is charged with the responsibility of reviewing the 1991 constitution. The abridged draft was published in a validation workshop hosted by the CRC which provided opportunity for members of the public to endorse or reject some of the provisions contained in the new constitution.
Some of the key issues highlighted by the CRC were proposals made by institutions calling for new chapters to be included in the constitution relating specifically to Local government and decentralization, lands, natural resources and the environment, citizenship, information communications and the media, etc.
The creation of special chapters was a direct result of the proposals made by heads of institutions so that their organisations could be brought to par with all other institutions which are provided for in the current constitution. Prominent among these institutions was the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) whose president, Kelvin Lewis had earlier submitted to the CRC a document titled: ‘Proposed Chapter Twelve’. The SLAJ president contended in the document that Sections 11 and 25 (1) Act No. 6 of the Constitution of Sierra Leone, 1991 were not enough for the media considering the important role it plays in state governance.
Apart from the creation of separate chapters, other proposals made to the CRC include: the creation of a House of Chiefs, appointment of the Chief Justice by the Judicial and Legal Service Commission, rather than by the President. Submissions also included making it impossible for either the President or Vice President to lose their seat as a result of dismissal from their political parties.
As the commission endorses the propositions, it seeks comments and responses from the public so that it can be satisfied that the national assignment has been carried out.
Head of CRC, Justice Edmon Cowan, told Radio Democracy on Monday that the reason he included these chapters in the constitution was to ensure that such institutions are not disbanded even if there was a change of government. He cited the example of the abolition of the district councils in the country during the political transition of the 1960’s.
Justice Cowan assured the public that the final draft of the reviewed constitution would be handed to the government in a month’s time.
(C) Politico 23/02/16
