News that President Julius Maada Bio is willing to exit the political stage has been welcomed by several sections of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) as they seem ready and prepared for such a time.
However, the talk that he will leave after completing his discredited and disputed second term has not gone down well with the SLPP stalwarts and those of the main opposition, APC (All People’s Congress) who expect the party leader to step down much more sooner than 2028.
The staunch SLPP members said the announcement by Mr Bio that he was prepared to leave State House and make room for others to step to the fore and take the party and country to higher heights didn’t come as a shock to them as they had been waiting for such an announcement. ‘What took Bio so long to make this announcement? Surely, this is the best news from State House since Mr Bio took over in 2018. SLPP as a democratic political institution has enough people to swiftly and very quickly replace him today. We do not think that he will or should be allowed to go past this year though, as we all know he didn’t win the 24th June, 2023 elections although he has been doing everything in his power to convince the whole world to accept the announcement that he had won the presidential elections,” the staunch SLPP member informed this press.
For someone that had been insisting that he had won the elections, SLPP supporters said, President Bio about-turn cannot be wholly divorced from actions of the international community regarding the disputed presidential result announcement that has resulted into a political stalemate in the country.
“Based on all of Mr Bio’s plans and actions since the announcement of the presidential election result especially as they relate to legal instruments, the rule of law and the party and national constitutions, we were very worried that he was making plans for a long stay as President. Issues in the region concerning the actions of the military in countries in the Sahel region going down as far as Gabon also gave us the feeling that Mr Bio was planning to stay on at State House all in the name of preventing the military from taking over. But with the nation’s financial backers not willing to renege on their stance that the past election was flawed by irregularities that knock at the credibility of the said results and integrity of the electoral commission for Sierra Leone, we are happy that Mr Bio has seen wisdom in him not insisting on staying in power, which would have returned us to the days of Pa Sheki. The nation is not prepared to return to the era of the dictators,” female SLPP politician said.
SLPP also informed Nightwatch that Mr Bio’s decision to announce that he will soon be leaving power is directly related to backroom dealings or meetings between the SLPP, the main opposition, All Peoples Congress (APC) and the international community that had nothing to do with the communiqué that resulted from the brokered peace deal between the two political giants.
Another excited SLPP member said: “This news is the result of a lot of prayers and hopeful or wishful thinking. We have been praying for Bio to see the light and not take the country back to the days of Pa Sheki. For us in the SLPP, we have been waiting and believing that this day will come. However, the members of PAOPA are not so pleased with Mr Bio’s announcement.”
The SLPP patriot said members of the party that believe in the respect for the rule of law and abiding by the spirit and letter of the party and national constitutions said members of the New Direction or PAOPA are not happy with Mr Bio talking about exiting the stage.
“The PAOPA supporters are the ones that would want Mr Bio insist that he won June 24, 2023 elections in a free, fair and credible manner, although we all know he doesn’t. These guys are the ones benefitting from lucrative government posts and enjoying government business and contracts. They don’t want to see the end of their gravy train; they are not willing to even see the train take a stop. But the joke is on PAOPA as Bio will soon leave,” another SLPP politician claimed.
When the elections probe committee finish their work and we get to the elections data, we will all get to see what the APC and others have been insisting on which is that the whole election was a stage-managed affair that was delivered for one man and party to win, that is, Julius Maada Bio and the SLPP.
As a party of intellectuals, SLPP has more men and women in the party that can do a better job than Mr Bio. He is clearly not the best the party can field for any election. If the party had had a national convention to elect a flag-bearer, there is no way Mr Bio would have been the candidate for the 2023 elections.
But, this is now water under the bridge as Mr Bio will soon be leaving, but much sooner than he thinks according to SLPP bigwigs.
Meanwhile, opposition members spoken to by this press said Mr Bio’s announcement that he would leave the political stage was good news. They say his timing is perfect as it falls within their hope that there would be a runoff election after the tripartite elections committee shall have finished their work.
“This is good news. However, we hope that Mr Bio is conscious of the fact that we expect him to be prepared to leave after the runoff election. It is actually prophetic because there was a time when government hinted that the general election was going to be held in 2024 as opposed to 2023. The APC is certain that we will see a presidential election this year.
The people of Sierra Leone should and must trust in the rule of law, in the victory of good over evil. Many people doubt that we will have an election this year, but we believe that justice will prevail.
Meanwhile, we are more excited that Mr Bio himself has said he is willing to leave, as this means that he will accept the elections result after the runoff,” an APC executive official said.