The All Peoples Congress (APC) party has somehow concluded their election of members or delegates precedent to the holding of the party’s Emergency National Delegates Conference to approve its draft constitution so as not to violate the orders of the High Court of Sierra Leone.
The elected delegates who will be eligible to take part in the decision-making process of approving the draft constitution on 17, 18 and 19 September this year have come from the APC’s National Youth League, the Women’s Congress, and the party’s constituencies across the country. Twenty delegates were elected from the APC National Youth League, 20 from the Women’s Congress and five from each of the constituencies across the country.
While this process is highly commendable – as it has been rated by many as a show of respect for the law by the APC, who have always been describing themselves as a law-abiding party – facts and a petition letter from Kono district, as well as Kailahun, as regards the conduct of the elections in those districts have shown that all had not been smooth, blissful and fair as the party secretariat would want the people of Sierra Leone believe.
For instance, in Kailahun, a blatant interference was reported to have come from the party Secretariat in the person of Alhaji Osman Foday Yansanneh the party National Secretary General, who was alleged to have ordered that a staunch APC party card-carrying Dr Sylvia Olayinka Blyden was denied the opportunity to contest or to be voted for in Kailahun, where she claimed to have re-registered as a full-fledged member of the party.
The biggest accusation made against the APC National Secretariat and big guns however has come from the Kono axis of the party’s nationwide circle of supporters.
For Kono, the party’s district secretariat has put out a strong petition letter complaining of “certain anomalies that were openly observed” in the just concluded district elections in that part of the country, pointing accusing fingers directly at party big guns such as Hon. Chernor Bah, Bai Mahmoud Bangura, Karamo Kabbah, Femi Mansaray, Margaret Suluku, Hon. Lahai Marrah, Hon. Abdul Kargbo and Hon. Thorlie. All these big guns were accused for their “unacceptable and unfair” behaviour in the just concluded elections in Kono District.
Furthermore, skirmishes involving the firing of teargas by armed security officers were said to have erupted from the said election after one Francis Gbondo was refused the right to vote or was disenfranchised even though he is an eligible APC member and a resident of Kono.
The election petition letter therefore called on the 21-Man Committee on the National Delegates Conference to do an “impartial handling and peaceful resolution of this matter”.
Actually, it is essential that the matter is resolved peacefully, as called for by the petition letter. Advisedly, if the APC wants to be seen as a party credible with the process of electioneering and elections, charity should start at home. The party must adhere to the game of true democracy by allowing people to make their choice freely without hindrance or interference.
While the APC has proven to be a peaceful and law-abiding party by respecting the dictates or orders of the courts in doing everything in its powers to hold its National Delegates Conference where it will approve and adopt its draft constitution, it must not be seen to be throwing the baby out with the bath-water or losing all the sound reputation and integrity it has built for itself as a party that respects the rule of law, especially in the last 4 years or so.
The party has respectfully undertaken the process of approving and adopting its draft constitution to bring to a logical demise its 1995 constitution that made provision for selection of officials to hold key positions in the party.
It is expected that the party must keep up the pace of true democracy and remain true to its stance of ensuring that the people are allowed to choose who they want to represent them or lead the party.
The Kono axis of the party’s support base must be carefully handled. Needless to overemphasise the fact that Kono holds veritable stake in the APC‘s rank and file, ranging from the likes of Alhaji Chief Sam Sumana, (a strong standard bearer aspirant of the party) to others such as Balogu Koroma, Diana Konomany, Karamo Kabbah and other heavyweights in the district. These people may have strong bearing on the grassroots support the APC may be banking on in Kono. But it must also be noted that the C4C as a contending political party, which has Kono as its primary stronghold, would always battle hard to refuse the APC a sumptuous food of support or votes in Kono.
Having admonished or cautioned the APC secretariat in relation to recent happenings in their delegates election in Kono, it is but fair that the point is made that rumours of violence were coming from Kono, mainly from people who purported to be APC members or supporters but are actually linked to other camps in other political parties with the sole aim of disrupting the election or voting process if the voting did not go their way.
In fact, on Friday 27 August, Forum newspaper published an article on the APC delegates election in Kono which stated that “frustrated members of the C4C/Akuneh dynasty who refused to resign and join Sam Sumana and his APC/Akuneh movement are planning to beat the system and disrupt a pending APC Party/Constituency elections ordered by a High Court Judge in Freetown….”
It must be noted that election is a game of win or loss, and the practice of having it the way we want at all cost should not be condoned; otherwise the outcome would always be chaotic or full of violence.
Meanwhile, Forum would like the APC to watch its back and to ensure its National Delegates’ Conference is held under the canopy of a genuine democratic process.
