We are now on part three. You will recall we stopped at the National Dialogue. And we said that was not an ordinary session nor was it a meeting to discuss construction of market stalls. It was an assembly that would shed light beyond the immediate political milieu. It touched on the political biology of the state: the mechanism for conferring political power for the political governance of the state.
The National Dialogue on 17th July 2025 was well attended and graced by a number of dignitaries in both the civil, political, and diplomatic space. It reflected the appetising interest showed by the authorities and the unflinching commitment exhibited by development partners towards the process.
Chief Minister, David Sengeh, said Sierra Leone was at the crossroads, redefining its political, legislative, and electoral history. The National Dialogue was not just a symbolic exercise, but a serious, inclusive, and transformative national process.
According to Alpha Sesay, Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Recommendation 78 was a testament, affirming that Sierra Leone’s electoral system would be chosen by its people, thereby providing ownership by the public and enhancing credibility of the process. Since 1996 PR and FPTP had been used interchangeably. It was important that the dialogue focused on key issues such as inclusivity, increased political participation, accountability, elimination of political instability and violence, and reduction in the cost of elections.
Minister of Information and Civic Education, Chernor Bah, opened a public education on the two electoral systems. In the closed-list PR system, candidates listed by the political party would be unknown to the public, unlike the open list where the public would vet the list. In first-past-the-post, constituencies would be created and each would vote for a candidate to represent that constituency in parliament.
For Seraphine Wakana, United Nations Resident Coordinator, the significance of Recommendation 78 was that it called for a consensus. Jacek Jankowski, Head of Delegation of the European Union, pledged continued support to Sierra Leone under the Sierra Leone Democracy Strengthening Programme.
Readers will now see the long period of consultations on the electoral systems. Over a year ago and across the country, the public had the opportunity to discuss PR and FPTP. Concerns that there had been fewer consultations on the subject are untrue in view of the fact that there had been a year-plus of consultations leading to a national dialogue. See part four.