Monrovia – The legitimacy of the ongoing voters’ registration by the National Elections Commission (NEC) is currently under investigation at the Supreme Court, following a petition filed by the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP) over rising constitutional questions.
The CPP had raised concerns about the constitutionality of the NEC conducting voter registration before handling the census in the country. During a hearing on Tuesday, April 4, before the full bench, the CPP, through its legal representation, Cllr. Aloysius Toe and Finley Karngar, contended that the NEC’s action of conducting voter registration after the census, but without constitutionally demarcating constituencies into which a voter is to be registered, raises constitutional questions.
They cited Article 89 (b) of the 1986, as amended Liberian Constitution, and said that Article 39 requires “the Legislature shall cause a census of the Republic to be undertaken every ten years.” Furthermore, referencing Article 80 (e) of the 1986 Constitution as amended, they argued that “Immediately following a national census and before the next elections, the Elections Commission shall reapportion the constituencies by the new population figures so that every constituency shall have as close to the same population as possible; provided, however, that a constituency must be solely within a county.” They added that “each constituency shall have an approximately equal population of 20,000, or such number of citizens as the Legislature shall prescribe in keeping with population growth and movements as revealed by a national census; provided that the total number of electoral constituencies in the Republic shall not exceed one hundred.”
However, the CPP argued that the NEC, in September 2022, published what it called the “Key electoral dates – 2023 Presidential and Legislative Elections,” in which it announced plans to conduct voter registration beginning December 15, 2022, and ending on March 17, 2023, without any indication to demarcate and reapportion constituencies, as required by Article 80 (e) of the Liberian Constitution of 1986, as amended. They said that by its refusal to provide for the demarcation and reapportionment of constituencies in its schedule of activities, the NEC was indicating that it had no desire or intent to respect the mandate of the constitution and perform its constitutional duty.
The CPP argued that “after the national census commenced in early November 2022, the Respondent National Election Commission, again in January 2023, published another ‘Revised-Key Electoral Dates – 2023 Presidential and Legislative Elections,’ in which it further announced plans to conduct Voters Registration beginning March 20, 2023, and ending on May 10, 2023; and again made no indication or provision in the document to demarcate and reapportion constituencies, as required by Article 80 (e), Lib. Const. (1986, as amended).”
Cllr. Aloysius Toe asserted that the failure of the National Elections Commission (NEC) to consider the demarcation and reapportionment of constituencies before the voter registration process is a blatant dereliction of its constitutional duty.
The NEC’s decision to commence voter registration on March 20 without demarcating constituencies was seen as a violation of the Liberian Constitution by the Petitioner Collaborating Political Parties (CPP), who argued that the NEC’s move was a true desire and intent to violate the Constitution.
The CPP argued that the Constitution commands the NEC to prescribe a population threshold and demarcate constituencies before proceeding with any voters’ registration, as every voter must know their constituency, and that information is required to be on the registration card. The CPP’s legal team also argued that proceeding with voter registration without meeting these prerequisites is not only a violation but is unconstitutional.
The CPP challenged the constitutionality of the NEC’s action, stating that neither the NEC nor the Legislature has the authority to act in contravention of the Constitution, and that any act or activity that tends to supersede the Constitution is unconstitutional. The CPP further requested the full bench of the Supreme Court to declare the NEC’s actions unconstitutional, void, and without any legal effect.
The CPP noted that the census results have been submitted to the Legislature by LISGIS, and it is up to the Legislature to set the new threshold for the demarcation of electoral constituencies.
However, lawyers representing the NEC, Cllr. Nyenati Tuan and Cllr. Wilkins Wrights, disputed the CPP’s claims, requesting the High Court to dismiss the Petition on the grounds that it did not include the names of the sitting justices of the Supreme Court. They further argued that under the constitutional doctrine of separation of power, as found in Chapter 1, Article 3 of the Liberian Constitution (1986, as amended), the NEC does not have the legal authority to command or compel the legislative branch to carry out and perform its functions outlined in the Constitution.
The NEC sees the responsibility as wrong, untenable, and legally unreasonable that, because Article 80 (c) of the Liberian Constitution (1986, as amended), requires every Liberian citizen to register and vote in a constituency and the country is currently divided into seventy-three (73) electoral constituencies, the National Election Commission is legally justified in registering eligible voters in one of those seventy-three (73) constituencies, even if the constitutional prerequisites and preconditions are not met.
By further relying on Chapter 4, Section 4.1(3) of the New Election Law of 1986 as Amended, which provides that βno change in the definition of a constituency or a voting precinct shall apply to an election if the election day is less than twelve (12) months after the day the change is published, unless the commission announces, at least 120 days before the election day, that all necessary preparations are being made to allow the changes to the election,β the NEC said that, under the above-cited law, it has no authority to change the definition of a constituency. That is, it has no authority to demarcate a constituency of approximately equal population as required by the constitution, unless the legislature comes out with a new reapportionment of electoral constituencies between now and the end of May 2023.
The NEC legal team further maintained that there will not be and cannot be any redemarcation of the new electoral constituency for the 2023 General Election.
While the petitioner agrees that the respondent has no authority to demarcate a constituency unless the legislature sets a constituency threshold, the petitioner CPP also contends that the respondentβs position is wrong and unconstitutional under the law in that the respondent has no authority to proceed with voter registration absent a constituency threshold and demarcation.
But the NEC inferred that because Article 80 (d) of the Constitution authorizes the legislature to prescribe a population and constituency threshold before the respondent National Election Commission can demarcate, and because the legislature has not done so, it is the legislature that should answer the petition, and not the National Election Commission.
Following arguments from both the petitioner, CPP, and the respondent, NEC, Chief Justice Sie-A-nyene G. Yuoh noted that the full bench reserves the ruling in the matter.