2023-06-28 09:01:08
In Sierra Leone, incumbent Julius Maada Bio won the presidential election. The West African country’s electoral commission announced on Tuesday evening that 56 percent of voters voted for Bio from the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) on Saturday.
His challenger Samura Kamara from the All People’s Congress (APC) received 41 percent of the vote. Kamara criticized the results as not credible and refused to acknowledge them.
The vote was accompanied by sometimes violent clashes between security forces and supporters of the opposition around election day. According to Kamara, shots were fired at the headquarters of his APC party after the election at the weekend.
The two candidates had already competed against each other in 2018. At that time, Bio won the runoff with a narrow majority.
Election observers: resolve disputes peacefully
The EU election observation mission urged on Tuesday to resolve open disputes peacefully. The election observers also criticized the “disproportionate use” of force by the security forces. In addition, there were delays during the vote on Saturday without the reasons for this being adequately explained by the electoral commission.
About 3.4 million of Sierra Leone’s approximately 8.5 million citizens were registered to vote. According to the electoral commission, around 2.8 million people cast their votes, which corresponds to 83 percent of all registered voters. An important issue in the election was the poor economic situation in the country.
Claudia Bröll, Cape Town Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 2
From 1991 to 2002, Sierra Leone experienced one of Africa’s worst civil wars, killing tens of thousands. In 2014, an Ebola outbreak plunged the country into another multi-year crisis. The economy has not recovered since then. Many people, especially in rural areas, live in extreme poverty. 60 percent of young people are unemployed, the price of basic food has multiplied.
Bio, who ruled two months after a military coup in 1996 and helped transition to the country’s first free elections in decades, is revered by many as the “father of modern democracy.” His government, in office since 2018, introduced free schooling and promoted equality, science and the country’s infrastructure.
At the same time, Bio is also criticized for its actions against opponents. More than 20 demonstrators and six police officers were killed in the violent crackdown on protests by state security forces in August.
#Julius #Maada #Bio #elected #President