THE PR SYSTEM WILL FOREVER CHANGE ELECTORAL POLITICS IN SIERRA LEONE.
by Prof. Umaru Farouk Bah
October 22, 2022
The press statement of the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone (ECSL) dated 21 October, 2022, gives the impression that the proportional representation system (PRS) will apply across board to all three categories of seat (i.e., presidential, parliamentary and local council), and NOT JUST PARLIAMENTARY SEATS. Ref: “The 2023 multi-tier elections will be conducted using the PR system….”.
Unless this was a typo (i.e., an “unintended error”, please forgive the tautology), this will force a paradigmatic shift in our body politic for a long time to come. It thus warrants serious deliberation.
I would like to focus on FIVE fundamental shifts for now.
1. GOODBYE PRESIDENTIAL RUN-OFFS
Applying the PRS across board would mean goodbye to the 55% threshold to avoid a run-off in the presidential election, and hello to the first-past-the-post system, wherein the president could conceivably be elected in the first round and with less than 50% of the votes.
2. MORE POWER TO THE PARTY.
And less power to the people. Irrespective of its scope of application, the PRS shifts much more power (in fact, arguably ALL power) away from the individual candidate and elector, TO THE POLITICAL PARTY. Proponents of the PRS have in fact touted this as good for political stability, citing the end of bye-elections; since the seat belongs to the party, the party simply replaces a parliamentarian or councillor (often as a result of illness or death) with another one. But this could be a double-edged sword; that same party could also replace willy-nilly any sitting councillor or parliamentarian, akin to the powers of the President over His/Her ministers. We should therefore expect many instances of “Party Reshuffle”, not unlike “Cabinet Reshuffle”. And a lot of court cases challenging that act of “Party Power.”
3. GOODBYE GRASSROOTS CAMPAIGNING.
Welcome back “Symbol Campaigning” at Party Headquarters, much like the days of the One-Party system. That’s because candidates’ chances of winning no longer depends on the number of people who vote for them in their wards or constituencies. Rather, it depends on how far up on the official ECSL party list they are placed; the higher up they are on the list, the more likely they will get one of the seats apportioned to the party.
4. MORE POWER TO THE TECHNOCRAT
Hypothetically speaking, the biggest winner is the person who would like to serve in government, but who hates (or dreads) “politicking”. The PR system makes it much easier for the party to field a slate of well-qualified, technocratic, and practically apolitical candidates for both executive and legislative branches. IF THE PARTY SO DESIRES.
5. MORE POWER TO WOMEN & DIASPORANS
The PRS makes it much easier for party compliance with the new gender-parity act and the amendment enabling dual citizens to “run for parliament.” We are going to see a drastically different State parliament and city councils by August 2023 and beyond.
