Set in train to see the light of day, the long-awaited convention has followed so many turbulent actions and fisticuffs from especially party members who cloak themselves within intra-party camps and movements. All of these camps have claimed to be fighting to ensure proper reforms are undertaken in the party ranging from the adoption of the party’s constitution to the election of its officials.
Now it seemed the hour has come for all these demands to be actualised, since a new constitution is said to have been drafted which is the primary discourse at the upcoming convention scheduled for 17, 18 and 19 of September this year.
While the heat is on to get a new constitution in place and to elect a set of new officials and a flagbearer for the 2023 general elections, constructive and objective decisions in the interest of the party and its massive grassroots supporters should be the primary focus or goal of the convention.
Delegates including those of the National Advisory Committee (NAC) and the technical committee, should be mindful of what they do so as not to plunge their party into the abyss of more failures and put in place plans that are only castles in their air. Level-headedness and objectivity should be uppermost, as a single slip in the affairs of the convention may cause lasting injury that would affect all members and supporters of the party. Already party members like Member of Parliament Mohamed Bangura have started threatening and bragging that they would resort again to more court actions should the convention failed to capture their needs and demands. Hon. Mohamed Bangura says the APC does not belong to one set of people or family; it is a party for the people of the country, with massive grassroots supporters whose views and demands should be adhered to.
It is therefore vital that a thorough mind-searching of the individual and the party is applied to shake off those hard feelings, wrong perceptions, misconceptions and rancour from the hearts and minds of the delegates and other stakeholders of the party in order to achieve the expected outcome from the convention. The best reformers the world has ever seen are those who commence on themselves, says George Barnard Shaw.
So, as the party goes into another convention, all the players – be they members seeking positions in the party or those vying for the party’s flagbearer position – should be given a fair crack of the whip; they must be given equal chance and opportunity to prove their loyalty, ability and capability to take the APC from one level to another in its political, social and economic goals for the party and for the nation of Sierra Leone.
At this point of its struggles, the APC as a government in waiting should really work hard to put their house in order; hatred and acrimony should not be allowed to cover the ingenuity and aptitude of its stakeholders in their decision-making process; for hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.
The party big guns must exhibit the tenets of sage leadership. They must do the right thing in order to take advantage of the times in the political and socio-economic conditions of Sierra Leone if they want to show themselves as fit and capable to liberate Sierra Leone from its political mess and economic backwardness. The APC should take advantage of the times; for he who gathers crops in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son (Prov 10:15).
It is therefore essential that the APC as a government in waiting fix up themselves most appropriately. It is said when preparation meets opportunity a breakthrough occurs. When the time is up for election of a flagbearer, whoever is competent and eligible to man the affairs of the party or serve as flagbearer for the party – regardless of region or ethnicity and whether he or she is from the south, east, north or west – should be voted for or elected to serve the party and the nation.
So, all interested individuals in the party should lay their cards on the table; they should be honest about their feelings and intensions to achieve a healthy, viable and beneficial outcome in the convention for the good of the party and by extension the nation.
But if party members or authorities decide to do otherwise, it is a straw in the wind that means wrong decisions would be made, adoption of the draft constitution would be affected and ineffectual outcome for the party would be the resulting circumstance.
It is essential to note that all won’t be the same or support the same thing or person at the same time. Of course, if everything was blue, we won’t be able to tell the difference of the sky from the earth.
Differences in political and national affairs will always exist, but differences must be solved peacefully. The APC must take in its hands its own destiny. Party members must think of new and innovative way to strengthen the APC.
A party becomes weak and misdirected when its leadership fails to dream and overwhelmingly embraces the cultures of blame game, accusations, and character assassination, which are enemies of success or victory at the individual and collective level.
So, the APC authorities and other stakeholders must work together to build a better party that could transform Sierra Leone for the better.
Therefore, as the party goes to convention, delegates must ensure that they keep to the tenets of the meeting, adopt the draft constitution and come out with viable outcomes that would appease and benefit not only APC members but also the people of Sierra Leone.
Forum newspaper would like the APC to know that if they close their eyes to facts, they would learn through accidents
