Freetown, 11th May, 2026 — The High Court of Sierra Leone has dismissed a civil action brought by Dr. Sylvia Olayinka Blyden against senior officials of the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU‑EOM), ruling that the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the matter.
Delivering judgment on 7 May 2026, Honourable Justice Josephine F. Hinga ordered that the motion to dismiss filed by the defendants be granted. The ruling further directed that costs of NLe150,000 be awarded in favour of the defendants, payable by Dr. Blyden.
The case, registered as CC176/23 2023 B No. 23, had named EU‑EOM Chief Observer Elvin Incir, Deputy Chief Observer Inta Lase, Social Media Analyst Lukasz Wilda‑Domaradzki, Legal Analyst Sylvian Ollier, and the EU‑EOM itself as defendants. Blyden, who represented herself in court, had opposed the dismissal motion but the judge ruled against her.
The Solicitor‑General’s office, through State Counsel Mara Lansana, subsequently issued a letter to Blyden instructing her to comply with Order 3 of the ruling by 12 May 2026, warning that enforcement proceedings would follow if she failed to do so.
Shortly after receiving the letter, Dr. Blyden took to social media to denounce what she described as a “hasty and stupid threatening letter.” She argued that the judgment was based on “an expired writ” and stressed that the 21‑day appeal window had not yet elapsed.
“The 21 days for appealing a judgment (that was curiously based on an expired Writ!) nor reach yet but look way dem day rush for disgrace & expose den wretched Government with this kind of hasty and stupid Threatening Letter sent to my office this evening,” she wrote.
