We strongly believe that there is clear evidence to support the litany of allegations,
both nationally and internationally, that the Sierra Leone Presidential election on
June 24, 2023, was rigged by the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone (ECSL) to
favour the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and candidate Mr. Julius Maada Bio. 
The evidence of this has been made available to all by key personnel who were
present in Sierra Leone during the election, on all social media platforms by credible
international observers, for example the Chief Observer, Member of the EU Election
Observation Mission (EU EOM) to Sierra Leone, Ambassador to the American
Embassy, British Embassy in Sierra Leone, representatives from ECOWAS,
ECOMOG, US Foreign Relations Committee, etc. 

The EU EOM has confirmed that "the ECSL lacked clear, timely, and comprehensive communication with the broader public, creating uncertainties and reducing stakeholders trust in the election process". There was a lack of transparency and responsiveness to the legitimate concerns of disenfranchised voters, candidates, political parties, observers, and international partners, and therefore the election was not a free and fair one. 
Despite all the concerns that were raised by the opposition party, The All People’s
Congress (APC), and the citizens of Sierra Leone in relation to the transparency of
the election process, it was clear that ECSL did not address these issues. 
Evidence from the international community in tandem with The National Electoral
Watch (NEW) provided their response, which shows that the process was flawed and
the results were not credible.

These issues were highlighted by the election observers through press conferences
and letters addressed to ECSL and Mr. Julius Maada Bio, as the results announced
do not reflect the will of the people. There is widespread evidence that election
boxes were filled with completed ballot papers even before any votes were cast in
them. There were ballot papers that were found that were already completed in
favour of Mr. Julius Maada Bio. 

Some polling stations were not opened on time, and voters were refused to vote
even though they had arrived hours earlier to cast their votes and were in the queue
before the polling time expired. Some of the ballot boxes were not compliant as they
were opened, and some had non-identifiable or broken seals on them. 
The ECSL is supposed to be an independent body charged with the responsibility of
conducting credible, free, and fair elections, but this has not been the case in this
election process, as the Foreign Relations Committee has further confirmed that
the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone is an independent body concerned solely
with conducting a free, fair, transparent, and credible election, then it must release
disaggregated polling station results for Sierra Leoneans and the world to see.

This needs to happen as the results and reconciliation forms (RRFs) were collated at
various stages at all the polling stations. The RRF's data and input should have
tallied with the results that Mohammed Konneh (ECSL, Chief Electoral Commissioner) announced, and all the information put on the forms by ECSL should
have been projected on a screen for observers to see. This did not happen, and
observers were not allowed to see what was inputted to the system by ECSL at the
final stages.  Consequently, Mr. Julius Maada Bio was declared the winner by ECSL without providing a full breakdown of the votes from the election results. Sierra Leone is now a country on the edge. A country that went through a decade of civil war in which some of the worst crimes against humanity were committed is today at a crossroads.

In light of this, Mr. Julius Maada Bio has attempted to retain power at all costs and
has now reverted to the brutality that permeated their four years of military rule
between 1992 and 1996. It was during that period that extrajudicial executions took
place, and he has been named in The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s report
as one of the perpetrators of those heinous crimes.  In light of the latter, we demand that the security forces In Sierra Leone remain apolitical and that an independent public inquiry be set up to investigate their past and current atrocities, human rights abuses, and intimidation currently taking place in Sierra Leone against citizens of the opposition parties who are being targeted for not voting for the SLPP.
The will of the people has been denied due to the outcome of the just concluded
elections, and the people of Sierra Leone (both at home and abroad) want an inquiry
to be held for the people that have been unlawfully killed. 

Democracy is the will of the people for the people and by the people that has been
taken from the people. The democratic governance of the people of Sierra Leone
has been tarnished, and this is a huge concern for democracy all over the world. We,
Concerned Sierra Leoneans living in the United Kingdom and in the Diaspora, now
call on you to intervene and restore our democracy. The recently concluded elections were tainted with massive corruption and an electoral body that is partial with no regard to the 1991 constitution of Sierra Leone. 

We are asking that the UK government, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and James
Cleverley (Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Affairs
of the United Kingdom), intervene urgently in this matter and review the election
process that took place on the 24th of June in its entirety and take the necessary
actions following that review. We also ask that all data pertaining to the elections be
reviewed by an independent body. 

We recommend that a travel ban be placed on key personnel of the Maada Bio
administration, their families, and close associates. An embargo or restriction on
foreign aid to be placed on them. An immediate freezing of their foreign bank
accounts and assets. We are also asking the UK government to explore using the
new sanctions that target individuals and entities that violate human rights in Sierra
Leone to impose sanctions on members of the Sierra Leonean government, military,
and police forces involved in any human rights abuses. Deploying sanctions would
provide accountability for and serve as a deterrent to anyone involved in violations of human rights anywhere.

There is deeply concerning video evidence of the police force and army in Sierra
Leone currently engaging in illegal activities and human rights abuses, and there
have also been reports of police firing and killing citizens who have been protesting
peacefully about the current situation. 

The United Kingdom and international partners must act now if we are to avoid
another bloody civil war in Sierra Leone.

Sincerely yours,

CONCERNED SIERRA LEONEANS