President Julius Maada Bio has referred a petition challenging Sierra Leone’s Constitutional Amendment Bill to the Supreme Court for a judicial opinion, as the legislation faces legal challenges from the opposition APC and lawyers.
President Bio received the Bill from Parliament for presidential assent on 10 September, but its passage has been overshadowed by a dispute over whether Parliament followed the constitutional requirements for approving amendments.
The APC has challenged the parliamentary process before the Supreme Court, arguing that constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority under Section 108(2)(b) of the 1991 Constitution.
The dispute arose during Parliament’s consideration of the Bill on 10 August, when APC lawmakers walked out in opposition to the procedure used to approve it.
The government and parliamentary leadership have defended the vote, maintaining that Parliament followed the required procedure and that the threshold used for the vote was valid.
A separate legal challenge has also been filed by lawyers seeking a determination of the appropriate voting threshold and procedure for constitutional amendments. The case asks the Supreme Court to declare the passage of the Bill invalid if the constitutional requirements were not met.
The legal challenges have placed the Bill’s passage under direct judicial scrutiny as it awaits presidential assent.
President Bio has now referred a separate petition raising constitutional questions about the Bill to the Supreme Court under Section 122(1) of the 1991 Constitution.
The referral means the President will seek judicial clarity before making a final decision on the legislation.
If the Supreme Court’s opinion is not received within 14 days from the presentation of the Bill, the President is expected to communicate his final decision to Parliament at the earliest opportunity after receiving the opinion.
The court’s consideration of the constitutional challenges could therefore prove decisive in determining whether Parliament lawfully passed the amendments and whether the Bill can proceed to presidential assent.
