Titus Boye-Thompson, London
Many in the Sierra Leone People’s Party are anxious that the results as announced by Mohamed Konneh should be allowed to stand, that the people of Sierra Leone must accept that the barefaced skulduggery of an elections process should be allowed to pass by default. Not that most accept the results to be true or correct but amongst many, the push for stability and peace is a concern so the proverbial “leave your case to God,” has now become the accepted dogma.
The call for clarity and transparency on the outcome of the elections is now deafening. The saddest part is that the authorities are keeping a stoic silence with the intention that any one who raises opposition to this electoral theft are enemies of stability and peace. There can never be a more flawed position nor cam there be a more aggressive denial of the peoples right to choose their representatives and those who govern their affairs.
The current political impasse we are faced with in Sierra Leone is one of tactical disengagement with the political expectations of the people. The government owe it to the people to have election results that reflect the will of the people to be announced promptly after a cote is held. People who hold power or wield authority so this based on a sublime trust between the people and them. To deny the people a free choice is to undermine that trust. To then continue on a path of forceful imposition of that denial tantamount to an electoral coup, a flagrant disregard for constitutional provisions that secures access to power and an illegal occupation of power. To cut a long story short, the present government in Sierra Leone exists under a cloud of impropriety and there is an u resolved argument over it’s legitimacy.
Yes, it is true that the elections are over but the problem that persists is that the count has not been completed nor has the correct results been announced. Interestingly, the ECSL has the responsibility and constitutional mandate to announce these numbers. For any other party to do so would be a breach of the peace and according to the security sector, such acts could be deemed as treasonable. Calls have been made in several quarters, our development partners have raised concerns and our neighbours have anchored their positions in relation to their own internal security arrangements but a of such displeasure have not moved the Electoral Commissioner to announce or otherwise declare the results on the basis of the votes tallied at each polling station. In the event, the cloud becomes darker and it’s shadow over the elections become more ominous.
Where next for this rather difficult situation that now faces the country? The largest and invariably only opposition political party has refused to engage in governance under this cloud. They have indicated in the strongest terms that they would not allow their MPs, Councilors, Chair persons of Local Authorities and Mayor’s to take up their elected positions in deference to the party’s call for transparency and a valid tabulation of the peoples votes. To do otherwise would be seen to be correcting the wrong that laid waste to the people’s votes. In such a circumstance, the government may be apprehensive of going it alone and right so. It would automatically introduce a position of disavowal by the people towards thoae who would then be put above them as their representatives
In the event, the calls for reconciliation must have regard to what specifically needs to be fixed in order to be reconciled. It is not enough to say now that the elections are over and a winner has been announced, let the rest move on and accept the result. The facts that the results are questionable is a foundation of the resistance to the winner and as such there would be no reconciliation. The unwillingness to publish the disaggregated figures for them to be compared alongside what has been painstakingly obtained by other actors can only mean one thing, and that one thing points to a misdeclaration of a winner. In this circumstance however, now would be the time to consider the establishment of a government of national unity. Let us put the elections behind us but going forwards, we can only secure our peace by working together, use this period to rebuild our institutions and structures so that they serve the sovereignty of the state and not the wishes of individuals. We need a wholesale constitutional overhaul that can only be done by mutual engagement on the process. Only a government of national unity cam achieve this to the satisfaction of all. This is not a zero sum game but a call for equal participation in building a national fabric. We need to reset our systems so that they are resilient enough to restore democracy and the rule of law. So many things need to be fixed so this call for a government of national unity should act as a backdrop for fixing those things that deny our people freedom and growth in their everyday lives. We need to satisfy the anxieties of minorities, and to ensure that our political systems reflect the participation of all such interests. This is a call for unity and a chance to build on the concept of who is a true Sierra Leonean!
