Opposing Constitutional Amendment Bill Vote… APC MPs Walk Out Of Parliament

By Abdul Rahman Bah

Members of Parliament from the All People’s Congress (APC) have rejected the Constitution of Sierra Leone (Amendment) Bill, 2025, following a heated sitting at the Well of Parliament in Tower Hill, Freetown, on Monday, 10 August 2026.

The opposition MPs, led by Hon. Abdul Kargbo, Minority Leader of the APC, strongly objected to the procedure adopted by Parliament to consider and pass the constitutional amendment.

Hon. Kargbo and his colleagues argued that Parliament, as a constitutional institution, has a duty to ensure that any attempt to alter the country’s supreme law is conducted strictly within the requirements of the 1991 Constitution.

The APC MPs maintained that they could not participate in a procedure which they believed failed to meet the constitutional threshold required for amending the Constitution. Their position eventually resulted in the opposition lawmakers leaving the Well of Parliament as the House proceeded with the bill.

The walkout turned the parliamentary sitting into a significant political and constitutional confrontation, with the APC making it clear that its objection was not simply against the content of the amendment, but also against the procedure through which it was being passed.

Hon. Abdul Kargbo emerged as a leading voice in the opposition’s resistance, insisting that Members of Parliament must protect the Constitution and should not become part of any process they believe violates its provisions.

The disagreement centred largely on the interpretation of Sections 91 and 108 of the 1991 Constitution and whether the amendment under consideration required a two-thirds majority or could be passed through the ordinary parliamentary majority.

Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Segepoh Solomon Thomas, defended the position adopted by the House. In his ruling, the Speaker maintained that the Constitution must be interpreted as a whole and according to the specific requirements attached to each provision.

The Speaker argued that Section 91 provides the general rule for parliamentary voting, while Section 108 establishes the procedure for constitutional alteration. According to his interpretation, a two-thirds majority is required where the Constitution expressly provides for such a threshold, rather than automatically applying to every constitutional amendment.

The Speaker therefore ruled that the provisions targeted by the Constitution of Sierra Leone (Amendment) Bill, 2025, did not fall within the category requiring the special two-thirds threshold and that the general parliamentary majority could consequently apply.

Despite the ruling, the APC maintained its objection and proceeded with the walkout.

The controversy has now moved beyond the immediate parliamentary disagreement and into a wider national debate over constitutional interpretation, parliamentary authority and the safeguards surrounding amendments to Sierra Leone’s supreme law.

The Speaker has also referred the broader constitutional question concerning the amendment of non-entrenched provisions to the Supreme Court for an opinion.

That referral could prove crucial. A definitive interpretation by the Supreme Court could determine how similar constitutional amendments are handled in the future and clarify the relationship between Sections 91 and 108.

For Hon. Abdul Kargbo and the APC, however, the message from Monday’s proceedings was clear: constitutional amendments must be subjected to the highest level of scrutiny, and Parliament must not proceed where there are serious questions about constitutional compliance.

The Government and parliamentary majority, on the other hand, maintain that the process followed the Constitution and that Parliament acted within the authority granted to it.

The passage of the bill has therefore not ended the controversy. Instead, it has intensified a constitutional debate that could have implications far beyond the current amendment.

At the centre of the dispute is a fundamental question: what voting threshold does the Constitution require when Parliament seeks to amend provisions that are not expressly entrenched?

Until the Supreme Court provides further clarity, the rejection and walkout by the APC MPs will remain one of the defining moments of the parliamentary debate over the Constitution of Sierra Leone (Amendment) Bill, 2025.