His Excellency The President
State House, OAU Drive, Freetown
23rd March 2020
Your Excellency,
RE: DECLARATION OF A STATE OF PUBLIC EMERGENCY IN SIERRA LEONE
INTRODUCTION:
The novel corona virus (COVID-19) currently sweeping through the globe was recently declared a “pandemic” by the World Health Organisation. To convey the gravity of the situation, the Director-General of the World Health Organisation says “Pandemic is not a word to use lightly or carelessly. It is a word that, if misused, can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death”. As at 11th March 2020 when his speech was delivered, there were “more than 118,000 cases in 114 countries, and 4,291 people [had] lost their lives”. As at the date hereon, two weeks later, the virus has spread to 173 countries in total and many more cases, 347,051, and deaths exceeding 14,789 have been reported. Most concerning is that there are reported cases in both Guinea and Liberia, the two countries with whom Sierra Leone shares borders.
On this basis, suffice it to say that the virus is on the rage and that the Sierra Leonean populace faces an imminent risk of contracting the virus. At a time where no vaccine or medication has been forwarded as an antidote this would prove disastrous and would worsen the general economic and social state of the nation.
LEGAL REGIME ON PUBLIC EMERGENCIES AND APPLICATION:
The 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone contains provisions for the declaration of a state of public emergency under Chapter III – The Recognition and Protection of Fundamental Human Rights and Freedoms of the Individual. Section 29 (1) therein specifically gives your Excellency the authority to declare a public emergency whenever you are of the opinion that a state of public emergency is imminent or has commenced. In such a case –
“the President may, at any time, by Proclamation which shall be published in the Gazette, declare that—
a. a state of public emergency exists either in any part, or in the whole of Sierra Leone; or
b. a situation exists which, if it is allowed to continue, may lead to a state of public emergency in any part of or the whole of Sierra Leone”.
The Supreme Court of Sierra Leone in the case of THE STATE V. ADEL OSMAN & ORS interpreted Article 19(1)(b) stating that what the President believes to be a situation “could be wide-ranging and encompasses a multiplicity of situations ad infinitum. It lies in the sole power and discretion of the President to determine a situation, which at any given time in his estimation, deserved a declaration by Proclamation of a state of public emergency”.
Pursuant to this, Section 29(2) stipulates an exhaustive list of occurrences that may require the proclamation of a state of emergency and one of such is where “there is an occurrence of imminent danger, or the occurrence of any disaster or natural calamity affecting the community or a section of the community in Sierra Leone”. A declaration of a state of emergency bestows upon your Excellency authority to make regulations and take measures which you deem necessary or expedient to maintain and secure peace, order and good government in Sierra Leone. Regulations made under section 29 and orders or rules made pursuant to it supersede that contained in any law even if contradictory. Such regulations may also empower certain persons or authorities specified in the regulation to make orders and rules as are necessary or expedient to meet the purpose of the regulations.
I am of the opinion that the spread of the coronavirus in the world and especially our immediate neighbours is a valid ground to declare a state of public emergency by your Excellency given the imminent danger it poses to the nation. The World Health Organisation has cautioned countries to take “urgent and aggressive action”. I do however recognise the efforts of the Government through various public statements as mainly advisory. The State Press Release of 16th March 2020 for instance, other than ban overseas travel for all government officials advised inter alia, social distancing and a limitation of public gatherings to a maximum of a hundred people. These pieces of advice are vague and devoid of implementation strategies at best. Most stringent at present is the Ministry of Transport and Aviation’s decision to suspend all flights to and from the Freetown International Airport. I wish to emphasise that Sierra Leone is amongst the very few West African countries who have no reported incidents of the virus and entreat that all necessary legally feasible measures be taken to ensure the virus is prevented from finding its way into our country.
PRECEDENTS OF DECLARATION OF STATE OF PUBLIC EMERGENCY:
Sierra Leone has a history of State of Emergency declarations, with the most recent being declared in February 2019 by your Excellency in light of various and frequent rape and sexual assaults. In the decade 1970 to 1979, there were declarations of states of emergencies on three various occasions. In 1970/71, H.E. President Siaka Stevens declared the first in the face of vociferous and clamorous political dissent; again in 1977 after students demonstrated against him at a graduation ceremony at Fourah Bay College, and third was declared in 1978/79 in the face of mounting labour unrest and a threatened nationwide strike. H.E. President Joseph Saidu Momoh in November 1987 also declared a state of emergency due to what he perceived as an “economic crisis”. And during the Ebola health crisis which plagued Sierra Leone, a state of public emergency was declared on 31st July 2014 by H.E. President Ernest Bai Koroma. The measures taken to combat the spread of ebola amongst others included curfew and a three-day lockdown. However, the transfer of coronavirus unlike Ebola is discreet, necessitating firmer and more stringent efforts to contain the same especially given our current struggle with adequate and efficient health care.
A declaration of a state of emergency by your Excellency at this time, given the imminence of the corona virus, will almost certainly be non-contentious increasing the chances of it being supported on cross party lines in Parliament and by the populace at large.
CONCLUSION:
Your Excellency, in conclusion, it should be obvious to all that the coronavirus poses an imminent and exceptionally grave threat to Sierra Leone. If it were to get to this country, the disease would be difficult to contain given, inter alia, that until symptoms show, it is difficult to decipher it’s carriers by which time more persons would have been affected. The haphazard measures taken so far are insufficient to deal with the same. The said measures so far published, whilst laudable, do not carry sanctions for breaches and might very well lack legal basis and would be much effective if a state of public emergency were declared as advised supra. Developed countries with exceptionally good medical infrastructures and facilities are struggling under the pressures of this pandemic. Sierra Leone will virtually crumble if this virus were to find its way into Sierra Leone and gets out of control. These are exceptional times in the world that require exceptional / draconian measures by your Government to protect the people of Sierra Leone.
Yours faithfully,YADA HASHIM WILLIAMS
.CC:
1. The Attorney-General & Minister of Justice.
2. The Hon. Speaker.
