Main Opposition, All People Congress (APC) was almost hopeless after President Julius Maada Bio said there would be no more election until 2028.
The party’s future became bleaker after the United States Ambassador, David Hunt said there would be no rerun since APC failed to challenge the results in the courts. A rerun of any election means to re-conduct the election if a petition is successful, but it is a rare moment for democracies all over the world.
Clad in a grey suit, Bongo Man cap and dark shades, President Bio allayed rerun fears held by SLPP members in Bo city saying the election was over and all had to look forward to 2028. Further assuring his supporters, Bio threatened to come down heavily on opposition politicians who peddle rerun fears.
The latest statement from the President throws the work of the Tripartite Committee into big doubt as majority of the voters hope that at all cost there must be rerun or fresh election so that the votes could reflect the will of the people of Sierra Leone.
If the warning of APC’s co-chair, Dr Kaifala Marrah is strictly gone by, Bio should not utter any comment that sounds peremptory.
Although the Tripartite Committee, by its nature is bigger than government, Bio’s statement sent fear and shock since a man in the driving seat could do anything to derail the election probe.
Since he launched the committee in November, last year, it was apparent that Bio and his government did not offer the necessary moral and financial support to the committee, a situation that delayed the election investigation.
He failed to provide the $500, 000 (five hundred thousand dollars) which he earlier promised to offer to the committee during its launching.
The committee however got the much-needed financial boost from the United States following a visit by one of US’s top foreign officials, Linda Greenfield.
Government officials, according to Dr Kaifala Marrah, were also absent on the day the probe was to begin, another move to water down the investors’ effort.
The committee whose mandate should not exceed six months is dragged almost to eight months since two months was unjustifiably wasted.
If government sticks to the appropriate time frame, the election probe should have been completed last April.
APC politicians were however hopeful that no matter how long the night, the day will surely come, but they were taken aback when President Bio claimed that there would be no more election until 2028.
Matters were worsened quite lately when it became clear that the PAOPA regime was secretly carrying out a clandestine constitutional review process targeting the presidential term limit to make it limitless.
According to Sierra Leone’s constitution, a President should rule for only two terms of 10 years either consecutive or not, but out of the love or lust for spoils of office, the PAOPA government, according to political commentators would like to make it limitless to maintain a tight hold on power by winning fake or fraudulent election.
One of APC’s lawyers, Ady Macauley was the first to raise the red flag about government’s secret tampering of the constitution, and now the process is materialising in broad daylight.
Newsmen who share their findings with Nightwatch press indicated that the PAOPA government would soon hold constitutional review workshop most likely to inform the public about progress made so far.
The PAOPA regime notoriously known for breaching protocols would not hesitate to announce that several portions of the constitution could have been touched.
A white paper on the constitutional review process was launched at State House two years back setting the pace for subsequent work on the document.
Fear also was rife among the people of Sierra Leone that the PAOPA regime is treading on the path to one-party state, a project initiated in mid 1960s by one of the party’s founding fathers, Sir Albert Margai, Sierra Leone’s second Prime Minister.
A popular argument holds that SLPP government is jittery and timid about leaving power owing to crimes against humanity for which they are sure of facing the music.
In the midst of fear and doubt widespread in the main opposition camp, came another seeming devastating blow from the US Ambassador, David Hunt who said there would be no rerun election in Sierra Leone since APC failed to challenge the election results in the courtroom.
Citing the laws of Sierra Leone particularly, the constitution, it is clear from the diplomat’s statement that judicial authorities are the only competent persons to decide on the illegality or legality of the electoral process.
One could hardly figure out what prompted such statement form the US Ambassador especially at a time the Tripartite Committee is about to come out with its recommendations.
The diplomat’s claim of no rerun threw SLPP politicians into an unprecedented jubilation saying the game is over. Chief Minister, David Moinina Sengeh who represented government at the three-day mediation between his party and the APC in October, last year, was shown by a video dancing in a highly spirited manner hoping that the end game is at an end. However, other SLPP politicians did not take part in the ecstasy as the US diplomacy lies beyond the comprehension of a half-baked.
It calls for a highly educated and sharp-minded man to scratch the surface and see the innermost part.
Looking at the credentials of the current US Ambassador, one could sense an embodiment of education and high experience gained from diplomatic service rendered to several parts of the world including Asian countries where the United States is struggling to have allies and friends.
Former US Ambassador, David Reimer also strongly commended his successor, Mr Hunt who he said would never go against US’s interest.
For centuries gone by, democracy, human rights and development have always been key priorities and foreign policy objectives for the United States. A country’s alliance and friendship with the US depends on the extent to which such foreign policy objectives are upheld and respected prompting the widely known strapline that ‘America has permanent interest but no permanent friend.’
The super world power does not hesitate to part ways with any country that goes against the ideals of democracy and human rights.
Such countries as Iraq, Afghanistan, North Korea, Iran, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Syria offer good examples as countries snubbed by the US for desecrating democracy and human rights.
However, the United States is ready to embrace them if they show readiness to nurture and respect democracy.
It is the same with Sierra Leone a country that has got a fair share of the US’s aid but currently does not see eye-to-eye owing to alleged election rigging, abuse of power, human rights and the rule of law, widespread corruption that undermine development among other factors. The United States believe that states will prosper if they adopt democracy and that belief is widely spread by other countries in Africa and elsewhere.
In the early 1980s, democratic states in Africa effectively and efficiently delivered services to their people while authoritarian states failed. Standing on such perspective, it could be argued without any fear of contradiction that the United States will not pamper a regime whose resolve to strangle democracy knows no limit.
Despite the ensuing ecstasies in SLPP camps, APC has genuine cause of being hopeful that one day, the people’s votes would be reclaimed by the Tripartite Committee since the US Ambassador was not exhaustive of all options the people expect to hear after the election probe.
Mr Hunt did not rule out the options of fresh election or declaration of Samura Kamara where significant irregularities are detected after the investigation.
APC’s key representative at the Tripartite Committee has strongly maintained that the committee would recommend either a run off or fresh election where significant irregularities are discovered at the end of the investigation process.
APC’s hope is also bolstered by local and international election observation missions which completely discredited the June 24, 2023 polls. Head of the local observer group NEW (National Elections Watch), Marcella Samba Sesay was blunt to state that no candidate got the 55% threshold needed to avoid a run off. If all election monitoring bodies condemn the results and cut off cooperation with the Bio regime by way of travel restrictions and funding cut, there is no way, the United States could support such government, suffice it to say the ‘no rerun’ claim by Ambassador Hunt does not totally diminish APC’s hope, but it is still a wait-and-see affair.