President Julius Maada Bio
has returned the 2020 Finance Bill unsigned to Parliament following a Minute
paper dated 22 November 2019 from the Clerk of Parliament requesting his
assent.
According to a press
statement from State House has said, “The
general public is hereby informed that His Excellency President Dr. Julius
Maada Bio has returned the Finance Bill, 2020, to Parliament unsigned following
a Minute Paper dated Friday 22nd November 2019 from the Clerk of Parliament
requesting the President's gracious assent for the Finance Bill, 2020, pursuant
to Part V, Section 106(1) of The Constitution of Sierra Leone, 1991 (Act No. 6
of 1991).’’
According to the release from State House on Tuesday, His Excellency the President has returned the
Finance Bill, 2020, through a Memorandum to the Clerk of Parliament.
“Pursuant to Part V, Section 106(7), in the
Memorandum, the Secretary to the President stated the reason for the refusal of
the signature of the President: “His Excellency the President has perused the
document and has expressed grave concerns over the
open-endedness of the 'non-accountable imprest', as provided for in the said
Act. He is of the view that this is prone to improper use of public funds,’’the release stated.
Therefore, to address the carte blanche provision
of Section 42, His Excellency the President has proposed to Parliament that
Section 42(6) be amended so that it makes provision for a ceiling for the
non-accountable imprest.
“Unlike the past, the fact that Parliament and
members of the public are now discussing Presidential imprest demonstrates the
President's avowed stance on transparency. If amended by Parliament, imprest of
such nature and the proposed ceiling will now be guided by law. Members of the
public are reassured that His Excellency the President has an unwavering
commitment to democratic accountability, transparent governance and prudent
management of public funds,’’the State House release ended.
It could be noted that , some part of Finance Act 2020
was seriously criticised by the media , civil society institutions among others .
One of the those groups was the Renaissance Movement, a movement operating in
Sierra Leone which aims at re-inventing and repositioning the country
said in a statement on November 21st ,said “The
Movement noted that as movement, they are dismayed at some provisions of
the Finance Act 2020 which make the overseas travel imprest of the President,
Vice-President and the Speaker of Parliament unaccountable to the people of
Sierra Leone adding that as a movement
they considered this as giving a blank cheque to the President, his Vice
and the Speaker, at the expense of the country’s struggling economy’’
“It
is not only un-progressive but equally inconsistent with responsible economic
management as well as democratic principles of accountability and transparency.
The Movement is appalled that the representatives of the people of Sierra Leone
in Parliament could sanction the passage of those provisions in the said
Finance Act 2020. The Movement therefore calls on the President not to assent
the said law in the interest of the values of accountability and transparency
which are the bedrock of any democracy and which apply to all persons, whether
be they leaders or the Governed,’’
