Abdul Rashid Thomas
Africa-Press – Sierra-Leone. US Ambassador to Sierra Leone – David Reimer today called on Sierra Leone’s main opposition APC party not to boycott government, following the Party executives’ resolution at a meeting held two days ago in Freetown with their elected MPs, Councillors and Mayors not to engage with the ruling SLPP party and its government.
Writing on Twitter, US Ambassador Reimer said: “I urge the APC not to boycott government. A vibrant democracy needs a strong opposition; those who voted for the opposition need to have their voices heard.”
Yesterday, the APC party leader – Dr Samura Kamara published a congratulatory message to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu – not for his controversial winning of the presidential election in Nigeria, which is being contested in court, but for his appointment as Chairman of ECOWAS. Samura has not extended congratulation to Julius Maada Bio.
“Congratulations to Your Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on being elected as Chairman of ECOWAS. Your leadership, vision, and commitment to regional integration will undoubtedly propel West Africa towards greater peace, stability, and prosperity. Wishing you a successful tenure as Chairman,” Samura Kamara wrote on Twitter.
Response to US Ambassador Reimer’s call for APC not to boycott government has been mixed. Most party members and supporters are believed to be in support of the decision of the party bosses not to engage with President Bio and his ruling SLPP, until all disaggregated polling station results have been verified and published by the National Electoral Commission.
“It was us who stood out in the hot burning sun queuing up to vote that demanded our politicians not to take part in this illegitimate government. The will of the people was denied. Why can’t we confirm our votes with the disaggregated results for all polling stations as demanded by all observers,” was one reaction from a party supporter.
Today, as all of the elected APC MPs stayed away from the opening of parliament, a key voice among the party’s parliamentary caucus – elected MP Osman Timbo (Photo) published this statement defending the action of his fellow APC parliamentary colleagues:
“Since I officially joined politics in 2013, I have always maintained that I want to represent people, hence my choice to be a parliamentarian, and nothing else. In the June 24th General Election, I again asked the people to repose their confidence in me and allow me serve them as their parliamentarian. With a score of over 65%, the people in the locality of the district where I ran, gave me their votes.
“I take those votes very seriously. People’s votes are not just numbers or figures that can be played with anyhow. They represent their sweat, blood, voice and desire, and that must be respected. Our national constitution (1991) in section 5 (2) (a) provides that ‘sovereignty belongs to the people of SL from whom Government through this Constitution derives all its powers, authority and legitimacy’. It is all about the people we seek to represent.
“I take their votes as their signature in a social contract entered into with me. Since after the announcement of the results, I have received barrage of calls, messages, voice notes and visits from the same people, all saying the same thing – don’t go to Parliament, just yet. In fact, as I type I continue to receive persistent calls and messages.
“Today, as the 6th Parliament commences and the Oath of Office administered, I WILL NOT be attending in line with the voice of the people. ‘Vox Populi, Voi Dei’ – the voice of the people, is the voice of God.
“I wholeheartedly, without any form of compulsion, endorse my party’s (APC) decision, informed by its supporters and members, to stay away from participating in governance until certain demands are met, primary amongst them (in my view) is the publication of the disaggregated polling station results to corroborate the flamboyant results read out by the ECSL – remember, this ECSL and other state institutions and CSOs have many a time reminded us that it is the ECSL that has the sole mandate to publish results.
“Final results MUST accurately represent the total tally of those votes validly cast at every polling station. It should not take more than a day after the announcement of the final results for that to be published (for the sake of transparent and ‘saful’ elections) as even an uneducated man would expect that it is a simple addition of the 1 + 1 votes from the polling stations that should equal to the total final figures announced.
“I also note US Embassy Freetown post urging the opposition not to boycott Parliament for the sake of democracy, stating that ‘those who voted for the opposition need to have their voices heard’. Well, those who voted for us have asked us not to participate. Isn’t our silence loud enough? Remember how much we spoke and did in the last 5 years? Well, now we’ve chosen to keep quiet and mind our business. In this case, our silence does not mean consent. Silence here, is golden.”
The editor of the Sierra Leone Telegraph contacted Sylvanus Koroma of the APC to comment on the US Ambassador’s call for APC not to boycott democracy. This is what he said: “Someone asked me to double check how credible was the purported tweet of the outgoing US Ambassador. I simply told the person that credible or not (authentic or otherwise), the said tweet didn’t mention who the current opposition in Sierra Leone is. Its only urging the APC NOT to boycott government.
“And the reason for urging the APC not to boycott government was stated in the first bit of second sentence of the tweet — ‘A vibrant democracy needs a strong opposition.’ The operative phrase on the first bit (limb) of the second sentence is VIBRANT DEMOCRACY and the watchword is DEMOCRACY. Democracy itself has core policies and guidance which must be adhered to. And failing which, there cannot be said to be democracy and not to even mention the adjective ‘vibrant’ to it.
“In Sierra Leone the ECSL has policies to follow and to produce the results. This includes the disaggregated results which can then be verified with the political parties or candidates Results Reconciliation Forms (RRF) per polling station. Each polling station has a limit of 300 voters. But up to date the ECSL has not been able to provide the disaggregated results even though contestants and as well as observers have demanded that severally.
“Because of the blatant refusal to provide the results for almost 3 weeks now by ECSL, it is now a public knowledge that the assertion by the political parties especially the APC that the results are fraudulent has hold sway! Therefore, it is politically correct for the APC NOT to partake in any form of undemocratic government. This is what the American Ambassador and his government stand for!
“So, APC is not boycotting a government but has the right to boycott an undemocratic government, and certainly the American government will not support undemocratic government as per its principles.
“In essence the tweet is an irony of undemocratic government. One must have that ability to unravel the diplomatic loaded vibes. But in this case, it is not rocket science, you only need to have followed the position of the great American Ambassador to Sierra Leone in terms of the June elections to understand the drift.
“At any rate, the second limb of the second sentence provides for everyone’s participation. Fair enough, when the APC takes its rightful place, the opposition will have a voice and will be heard.
“In a nutshell, the outgoing US Ambassador’s tweet is clear to those with clear minds. Without vibrant democracy, democracy will be usurped and killed, or die in the hands of elections PhD coupists.”
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