Former Vice President of Sierra Leone, Alhaji Chief Samuel Sam Sumana late Saturday 11th July, 2020 narrowly escaped another assassination attempt from ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) thugs, shortly after his meeting with representative groups of Kono district Paramount Chiefs at the home of one of their seriously ill colleagues. The meeting was interrupted by SLPP supporters and members who had wanted to own the event, on grounds that the sick chief was their members, which saw the peaceful departure of former Vice President Sam Sumana. He was stopped from taking leave of the bereaved family as he was badly needed at the ceremony.
Chief Sam Sumana who was in district to sympathise with the family of P. C. Aiah Abu Mbawa Kongobar of Mafindor Chiefdom, who is seriously sick, met an abrupt interruption from desperate SLPP thugs who claimed to be protectors of the second term of their party.
Prior to the attacked on him and his delegation Chief Samuel Sam Sumana received a warm welcome from the Kono district PCs and members of the bereaved Kongobar family, who accorded him with a very important treatment at the occasion he fully participated in.
At the meeting with Kono PCs Chief Sam Sumana’s message was precise and clear to traditional and the district as a whole, pointing out that peace, unity and development in the community as important factors for progress and development in Kono, noting the preferment of the development of Kono district as well as representational concerns at national level.
However eye witness accounts are that is was after his meeting with representatives of Kono PCs that Chief Sam Sumana and his delegation were surrounded and attacked by ruling party assailants, with stones, knives, sticks and bottles onto to the peak of smashing his black Infinity jeep’s windscreen beyond repairs.
Amidst the scuffles Chief Sam Suman’s security guards were badly injured by SLPP thugs led by the notorious Mamahdi Bagdad, who championed the failed assassination attempt at the former Vice President out of the Chief Mbawa Kongobar’s compound at Hill Station.
It all unfortunately unfolded in full view of SLPP members and Government ministers, who couldn’t say a word, claiming that Chief Sam Suman has no right to receive him.
It could be recalled that automatically became the of the government and ruling SLPP target when he recently mend fences with his party, the main opposition All People’s Congress. He is one the supposed recipients of end of service benefits of past Government workers but has since his untimely dismissal has not been able to secure of end of service benefits.
Since then, he is being regularly faced with confrontations ranging from the withdrawals of his guards, unwarranted monitoring and surveillances of his movements by government and ruling party operatives wherever he goes in the country.
It is also reported that this is not the first the former Vice President is being attacked by ruling SLPP party operatives, as it is almost becoming a norm for them to be chasing any prominent opposition politician who pose serious challenge to the SLPP anywhere in Kono district. What Sierra Leonean politicians are slowly failing to note is that violence continues to undermine gains made in recent years in the consolidation of peace and democracy, development trade commerce and investment as well as other sectors and it should be thus put to permanent end and move forward.
