Africa 24 Analyst
It’s not the edifice of Sierra Leone’s presidential administrative office that is lost in dignity.
But, what’s lost is the truth to be told by fame opposition ‘biguns’ to the powers that be.
Sierra Leoneans are fed up with the recent status of affairs at State House as a leading opposition politician and the president “robbed shoulders” together suddenly few months after a more controversial election’s outcome in the country.
Earlier, Samura Kamara of the APC party and President Julius Maada Bio of the SLPP party were seen taking photo at State House, smiling while the people, grieving.
The chairman of the APC party, Mr. Minkailu Mansary, was also part of that meeting to kick-start an Independent Cross-Party Electoral Management Committee (ICPEMC) launched, last week, by President Maada Bio.
To many annoyed Sierra Leoneans, it is so disappointing on the side of their former presidential aspirant, Dr. Samura Kamara, to sit with President Bio in a meeting to discuss June 24, 2023 elections review owing to the past election’s concerns about lack of transparency, integrity and credibility.
The opposition had maintained that the June election’s was largely rigged, and it therefore went on months boycott from taking part in all-governance activities in the country until a fresh election is held.
But, APC, according to many people, allowed themselves to be “fooled” by the sitting government after an October 16, 2023 so- called Peace Dialogue, which outcome made the opposition to lift their protest ban.
And, calls have been buffeted by the opposition to have a re-run election within a six month period after the June 24 general elections owing to the past election the opposition had described as a rigged one by the incumbent government being headed up by President Maada Bio.
For peace to reign, October’s Africa Union Peace Dialogue proposed that elections-violence related cases be dropped by the government.
And all arrested persons, during June’s election period, who are still in prisons, should be made free as part of a fulfillment of the inter-party peace deal signed by the opposition, government, Sierra Leone peace commission, Africa Union, Ecowas, and Commonwealth.
But, news about those detainees’ removal from prisons is yet to be announced by government since the end- summit of that October deal.
To many people, they are shifting the blame now to Samura and his party chairman and the entire APC party including the government to be hypocritical as they have all failed to honour a deal that was agreed on to be implemented as provisions of that peace resolution document indicate.
“Going to State House is not the case, but on whose interests were they there for,” asked a resident of Freetown.
Critics of APC ex-presidential leader, Samura and president Bio also blamed the politicians as very ‘dishonest’ to the people of Sierra Leone who wanted to see their loved ones arrested during elections period to be released and had wished for an “external investigation” into the allegations of vote rigging on June 24 elections in Sierra Leone.