The main opposition All People’s Congress (APC) has demanded for fresh elections to be conducted, describing the outcome of the June 24 elections as fraudulent.
The party has vowed to boycott the governance process under the administration of President Julius Maada Bio which it says is a stollen mandate.
President Bio was declared winner by the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone (ECSL) on Tuesday, June 27, with 56.17 percent of the votes cast, narrowly beating his main challenger Samura Kamara, who got 41.16 percent.
The president was immediately sworn-in and he has since called for national unity and reconciliation.
But Kamara’s party, the APC, say it won’t recognize Bio’s mandate.
“What culminated in the rogue announcement of fraudulent election results on June 25 was not just a naked theft of the votes of the suffering masses who needed change, it represents the biggest threat to our democracy, unity and survival as a nation,” the party said in a statement.
While regional observers like the African Union and ECOWAS declared the June 24 elections free and fair, western observers have stressed that the counting and tabulation processes have been shrouded in an atmosphere lacking transparency.
The European Union in particular has pressured the electoral commission to improve on this by displaying results at polling center level.
The confusion has however been compounded by the position of a local elections monitoring group, the National Elections Watch (NEW), which says its data suggested that none of the 13 presidential candidates got enough votes to avoid a second round.
According to APC, not only has the SLPP tried to steal the presidential election, they are also allegedly working to give the ruling party a 2/3 majority in parliament and take a comfortable lead in local council elections across the country.
Six days after the voting, there has been no official results for the legislative and local council elections.
President Bio was sworn-in on Tuesday, June 27, almost immediately after he was announced winner of the election.
But the APC stressed that it wanted nothing to do with an administration it accused of presiding over a reign of terror directed at its supporters.
There were reports of protests resulting into violence during and after the elections, as the opposition complained of lack of transparency in the process.
The latest violence took place at the APC’s headquarters in Freetown, which reportedly resulted in the death of one person.
Footages of people dressing in SLPP party t-shirts allegedly attacking perceived opposition supporters have also appeared online, provoking further anger among the opposition.
“To date, there has been no responsible attempt to neither stop this organised violence against APC supporters, nor bring the perpetrators to justice” the APC said, noting that its leadership would “never rest until we seek justice for you!”
Among its six-point position, the APC says it will not participate in any level of governance, including legislature and local council under this administration, adding that fresh elections should be over seen by individuals and institutions who will ensure a fair and transparent process.
It also called for the resignation of all top security heads, including the police, ONS and army, as well as the Chief Justice.
The APC said it ignored the alleged excesses of the Bio administration for the last five years to allow peace to reign, but that it can no longer continue on that path, calling on its supporters and Sierra Leone’s development partners to join it in its effort to free the country.
In this regard, it is also calling for travel ban to be placed on individuals it says played instrumental role in stealing the mandate of the Sierra Leonean people. And on its list include the President himself, his wife, and top figures in the government like the Chief Minister, Foreign Minister, and Basic Education Minister.
“These individuals have shown a clear disregard for their constitutional duties and have instead aligned themselves with the undemocratic aspirations of Julius Maada Bio.,” the APC said.
