Did the world hear when the rigged winner of Saturday June 24, 2023, presidential elections, Julius Maada Bio said that Sierra Leone is an independent nation?
Yes! you were loudly heard Mr self-imposed president that Sierra Leone is a sovereign country with chances to look after herself in all aspects of state-governance, irrespective the limitations attached to such self-governing of sovereignty status as a country in terms of the mandatory implementations of international treaties and protocols. And that is exactly where the Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP) leader and presidential candidate for the just concluded flawed elections, Bio should know that; being a sovereign nation does not warrant any unleashing of insults at strong multilateral and developmental allies like Britain and His Majesty’s Government of the United Kingdom, the Federal Government of United States of America, Germany, France, the European Union Delegation to Sierra Leone and Ireland.
With all that, the world order is bigger than any illegality that is currently existing in Sierra Leone. They certainly have the capacity to save democracy from degenerating to any form of military dictatorship.
Therefore, no matter how a country is autonomous, if that nation belongs to international organisations, then such a state and regime can be surely regulated by the governing rules, regulations and protocols of those global bodies.
In view of that, the Mano River Union, the Economic Community of West African States, the African Union, the United Nations, the Commonwealth, the European Union Delegation to Sierra Leone, the United States Department for African Affairs among others have the powers to constructively save democracy from morphing into military rule, under the guise of a democratically elected government.
They did it in The Gambia in January 2017 when they quelled former president Yahya Abdul-Aziz Jemus Junkung Jammeh’s attempt to steal the people’s mandate in a presidential election where he was badly defeated by the then president-elect, Adama Barrow.
So, there is no way the MRU, ECOWAS, UN, the Commonwealth, EU, US, AU and others can sit by and watch Sierra Leone revert to military dictatorship, with Bio continuing to impose himself on the people, knowing fully well that he didn’t win the June 24 polls.
Sierra Leone is therefore calling on the international community to move fast and save the country’s democracy, restore strong institutions, protect minority rights, open space for checks and balances, freedom of speech and expression, and a free press, give the people their rights to protest, enhance the independence of the judiciary, and to demonstrate high level of respectability for the rule of law. With these civic institutions they will resurrect democracy in Sierra Leone for proper consolidation moving forward.
That besides, it will be difficult to run a lone government as the alternative government, the APC, which also claimed that they won the elections, have resolved not to work with an ‘illegal’ administration. The APC boycott resolve continues to worry Bio and his ‘illicit’ regime. Had that not been one of the biggest challenges or worries being faced by the so-called re-elected SLPP government, Bio shouldn’t be scrambling far and wide for legitimacy, calling on all manners of groups and organisations to State House to congratulate and endorse him for his claimed victory – a victory that is being chiefly questioned by scores of domestic and international elections observers, due to the collective failures of civic and democratic institutions under the very watchful eyes of Bio himself. Democratic institutions such as the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (EC-SL), the Political Parties Regulations Commission, the Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion, the security sector among others, all of whom conspired against the people of Sierra Leone, have imposed Bio and his failed SLPP on them for the second time. In fact, there are clear indications of such failures ranging from systemic refusals by heads of democratic institutions and remaining undemocratic and impartial, with primitive loyalty to the ruling SLPP party, rather than the state they owe obligations. ICPNC’s constant preachings of peace during the failed march to the level of sustenance of peace and stability that were kept prior, during and even after the elections. This is due to the high handedness of the National Coordinator of the ONS, Abdulai Caulker, police and RSLAF personnel, whose security details were only one sided, while the ruling SLPP operatives including the police and military personnel were busy intimidating the opposition members and supporters under the watch of domestic and foreign observers and Bio as the father of democracy.
Nobody is urging these high profile incumbent political party appointees like the Inspector General of the Sierra Leone Police, William Fayia Sellu, the Chief of Defence Staff of the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces, Lieutenant-General Peter K. Lavahun, the National Coordinator, the Office of National Security, Abdulai Caulker and the Chief Electoral Commissioner, Mohamed K. Kenneh to be that neutral, when they know that they receive their take-home from the Bio-led government and were acting all sorts of dramas to please SLPP party and Bio.
The EC-SL, RSLAF, SLP ICPNC and certain sections of the electronic media deceived, abused and failed the electorate in the delivery of their responsibilities. Though they are paid from taxpayers’ money by the regime of the day, yet they are expected to be apolitical and very much professional in the discharge of their respective duties to the state, especially the ECSL, security sector and others.
However, with all their partial and intimidating security postures against the opposition and other minority groups, the SLPP and Bio didn’t win the election and ended up rigging the polls and the will of the majority. And the rigged winning keeps receiving widespread criticisms and condemnations, with global snubs, especially from key diplomatic missions in Sierra Leone, including the British High Commission to Sierra Leone, the embassies of the United States of America, the German, French, Irish and the European Union Delegations to Sierra Leone. This global disapproval by the diplomatic missions in-country, have worried and angered Bio, causing him sleepless nights since the presidential elections results were forcefully announced, to a point that he is now bent on seeking recognition and congratulatory confirmations from everywhere in the country. And only ‘coupist’ democrats with the help of discredited EC-SL chief, Kenneh can brag of such a stolen victory. What a shame for an undemocratic ‘father of democracy’ whose victory remains questionable by world leaders, civilised and bigger democracies, domestic and foreign elections observers.
It could be recalled that Bio relied so much on the assessments and validations of the 2018 elections result by foreign observers, which brought him to power.
Why are they stranger bedfellows now? Is it because the same foreign observers now also want to do the right thing in accordance with international best practices? No way! Mr Bio, the people also rely on the assessments and validations of these same international observers so give respite to them to do the needful and save democracy in Sierra Leone.
By and large contesting the validations and assessments of foreign observers also exposes the SLPP and Bio’s rigging of the June 24 polls.
Such refusals are tantamount to Bio’s high level of despotic tendencies waiting to unfold in the next five to seven years as rumours could have it with the proclivity to continue with tyranny. For a regime that continue to attract international isolation, fifty-four elected APC legislative representatives and ten elected APC local council officials have resolved and signed public notices boycotting and promising not to work with the SLPP led administration at local and central government levels. Their positions are in firm stance with the APC party, in ensuring that they sustain the boycott and do not work with the imposed and ‘illegal’ administration.
Be well reminded that your predecessors were not treated well by the last SLPP-led House of Parliament. Most of them were arrested and imprisoned for their stance, and ten of them were robbed off their MP seats that were handed over to unelected SLPP followers. That was also a sour experience worth learning from. So now is the time for you the new guys to demonstrate your patriotism, loyalty to the democratic course of Sierra Leone and the APC party, by boycotting governance with the imposed Bio-led SLPP regime. By so doing until the demands of the APC party are fully met starting with the rerun of the presidential polls in accordance with the laws of the country and will of the people.
And you people will be on record for defending democracy.
