Republic+Government

=Republic Government= Chris LaRose

Sierra Leone has republic form of government established by a constitution in 1991 (“Sierra Leone”). It has a directly elected president (currently Ernest Bai Koroma) and a unicameral legislature. In contrast to our own republic, our president elected through a republican process (electoral college) (“Federal Government of the United States”), where citizens are elected democratically to choose the president. In Sierra Leone, the president is elected purely democratically like our own Senators and Representatives. Sierra Leone has a unicameral, or single-chambered legislature (“Sierra Leone”). In the U.S., we have a bicameral (two-chambered) Congress with a House of Representatives and a Senate. Like our own national government, Sierra Leone has three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judiciary.

The term “republic” refers to a system of government where the people, or at least a significant portion of them, retain supreme control over the government (“Republic”). This form of government originates from classical republics such as the city states of ancient Greece, to include Athens and Sparta, thought their structure differed greatly from modern republics. For example, Sparta had two kings but is not considered a monarchy because it also had ephors who represented the common people. In modern republics, the head of state is often dubbed the title of president, as is the case for both the United States and Sierra Leone. Both governments have a full-presidential system, meaning the president has substantial authority and plays a central political role. In republics like Germany and India’s, the president’s role is almost purely ceremonial (“Republic”).

Sierra Leone has a unicameral legislature, called a parliament, composed of 124 seats. These seats are held by members of three political parties: the All People’s Congress, the Sierra Leone People’s Party, and the People’s Movement for Democratic Change. The judiciary in Sierra Leone is similar to that of the United States: there is a Chief Justice who heads a Supreme Court, which is the highest court in the country. The president appoints judges who are approved by the legislature.