Freetown, 10 August 2026 — The Lawyers’ Society has expressed deep concern that Parliament reportedly passed the Constitutional Amendment Bill 2025 without securing the constitutionally mandated two-thirds majority of its total membership.
In a press release date 10 August 2016, the Society stated that the move contravenes Section 108(2)(b) of the Constitution of Sierra Leone, Act No. 6 of 1991. That provision requires the votes of at least two-thirds of the total membership of Parliament for such amendments.
“The Constitution sets out the procedure for its own amendment. Parliament, including the Speaker, is therefore bound to comply strictly with the requirements and procedures established by the Constitution,” the Society said.
It emphasised that where the Constitution demands a two-thirds majority of the total membership, neither a two-thirds majority of members present and voting nor a simple majority under Section 91 is sufficient.
The Society highlighted what it sees as an inconsistency in the Speaker’s approach. During proceedings concerning the removal of Auditor-General Lara Taylor-Pearce, the Speaker had distinguished between “two-thirds of Parliament” (the constitutionally prescribed threshold based on total membership) and “two-thirds in Parliament” (the proportion of members present or participating). The Society said it is troubling that the same principle was not applied to a bill seeking to amend the supreme law of the land.
“Allowing a constitutional amendment to pass without the constitutionally required majority would set a dangerous precedent: it would mean that Parliament could amend the Constitution through a procedure the Constitution itself does not permit,” the release stated. “This cannot be the standard expected in a constitutional democracy. If the Constitution is openly disregarded in the very process of amending it, the foundation of the amendment itself is called into question.”
The Lawyers’ Society called on the President, the Speaker, all Members of Parliament, the legal profession, civil society, and the people of Sierra Leone to respect and uphold the principle that constitutional change must be pursued only through constitutional means.
“The supremacy of the Constitution must be respected in both words and deeds,” the Society concluded.
