The disputed 2023 election, which was in favour of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP)- signalling an SLPP second term, is supposed to bring the All People’s Congress (APC) together at least not to have anything to do with the outcome of that election; but the outcome of that election has put a big wedge between Dr. Samura Kamara- the APC Presidential 2023 candidate, and the APC National Executive led by the APC National Chairman, Minkailu Mansaray.
Instead of the APC as a party at least taking concrete action to register its disapproval on the outcome of the 2023 Presidential and Parliamentary elections, the outcome of the 2023 election has been a source of serious disagreement, threatening the chance of the party not coming to power anytime soon.
The APC seemed united just after the 2023 election; but after the decision by the APC stakeholders to allow its elected Parliamentarians to end their Parliamentary boycott and join the Sixth Parliament, the divisions regarding the way forward for concerted and united actions to rectify the APC wrongs from the 2023 election became palpable.
The setting up of the Tripartite Committee brought some hope particularly to most supporters and sympathizers of the APC; but after the outcome of the Tripartite Committee that did not state any regime change in favour of APC, the APC intra-party divisions began to vividly manifest themselves. And not long after that, it was clear that the APC National Executive’s stance is to move on with party affairs until 2028- time for the next general election. But the ‘Electoral Justice’ of Dr. Samura Kamara is now the source of the intra-party division as it has become very clear that the National Executive is focused on the next general election- 2028.
Amidst this disagreement within the APC, the calls for peace and unity in the APC is loud, as some analysts, stakeholders and party supporters and sympathizers perceive APC unity as the only hope to at least regain political power in the next general election.
The disagreement within the APC has been made worse by social media as supporters of electoral justice and those waiting for 2028 are rubbing salt to the intra-party injuries with abusive, and downright nasty audio massages.
The intra-party division is getting worse instead of lessening as time passes, the feuding political camps seemingly losing focus of their primary political aim and objective- securing political power, giving its main political rival, the SLPP, more leverage to cling on to political power.
The APC as a party has to come together if it is to have any chance of making the party a political force to reckon with, and winning the 2028 Presidential election.
