Sierra Leone President Maada Bio has been sworn in for a second term just hours after the election commission declared him winner.
Under Sierra Leone's constitution, the presidential vote winner must be sworn in on the same day they are declared the victor.
President Bio’s swearing in ceremony took place at the State House soon after the election commission declared him the winner in an announcement made on Tuesday.
“By the powers vested in me… I hereby certify that Bio Julius Maada… [is] duly elected president,” declared Chief Electoral Commissioner Mohamed Konneh, despite protests from the opposition.
The President then gave a speech thanking citizens for their “trust and dedication,” adding that “the triumph belongs to every Sierra Leonean.” Bio’s Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) won nearly 1.6 million votes – 56.1% of the total ballots.
Disputed Results
His win has however been disputed by his opponent Samura Kamara who garnered 41% of the votes under the All People’s Congress Party (APC).
APC had on Monday rejected provisional results that showed an early lead for Bio, describing them as “cooked-up figures.”
APC alleged a lack of transparency by the electoral body in tallying the ballots, adding that its agents “were neither allowed access to participate (at tally centers) nor were they allowed to verify results prior to the announcement.”
The vote count was tense and fraught with controversies as some international observers expressed concerns about the integrity of the process.
“Carter Center observers reported that the tabulation process lacked adequate levels of transparency,” the observer group said in a statement before the electoral commission declared final results.
