By: Mohamed Sahr, Hafsatu Bangura
Presiding over the matter between the All People’s Congress (APC) party and Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL), Honourable Justice Adrian Fisher of the High Court of Sierra Leone has ruled out the matter from court on Wednesday 5th July 2023.
It might be recalled that on the 7th of June 2023, the All People’s Congress (APC) filed a case against the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL) and the Chief Electoral Commissioner demanding the Commission to produce the Disaggregated Voters Register as well complying to the provisions of the Public Elections Act of 2022. It was on this ground that the APC filed in judiciary complaint against the ECSL.
During the court proceedings yesterday, the APC failed to make legal representation whiles Alie Theo Turay Esq stood on behalf of the first and second respondents the ECSL and the Chief Commissioner of the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone.
In the Original Notice of Motion, the APC asked the court to grant “an order of mandamus” informing the Chief Electoral Commissioner to produce the National Voters Register to the First Applicant (APC) which the ECSL carefully undertook by making a release of its statement of the final updated 2022 voter registration exercise, dated 24th December 2022.
Lawyer A.T Turay on behalf of the first and second respondents furthered that the Applicants had legitimate expectations to receive the same in fulfilment of the First Respondent’s core value of transparency and which shall contain: “Firstly, the names and particulars of persons who are entitled to vote in the Presidential, Parliamentary and Local Council Elections slated for the 24th of June 2023, including voter identification number, date and place of birth, name and address and sex among others.”
Secondly, this Honourable Court grants an order of certiorari directed to the Chief Electoral Commissioner of the ECSL extinguishing all regulations, manuals, rules, and procedures at variance with Section 88(3)91(1)92(2)92(3) of the Public Elections Act No.17 of 2022.
The motion was supported by affidavits, which were sworn to by the APC Secretary General, who doubles as the Second Applicant in the matter, and Dr Richard Conteh.
The ECSL Chairman is the Second Respondent in the matter with the ECSL being the First Respondent respectively.
On that strength, Justice Fisher ordered that the APC party (applicant) should pay a cost of two thousand New Leones (two million Old Leones).