An Honorary Executive Member of the All People’s Congress Party, Alhaji M. A. Sesay, has written a strongly worded letter to the Secretary General of the APC on behalf of entire APC Executive urging them to step-down for the proper existence of the party.
Mr. Sesay pointed out that all COI indictees in the party including Ernest Koroma, Osman Yansaneh and others should step aside and allow a new executive to take over the affairs of the party.
He made this request against the apprehension that the current ruling SLPP party would drop a last minute bombshell to use the COI findings to eliminate these members who, according to him, would have occupied strategic roles in the APC for the 2023 elections.
The veteran APC politician cited 4th April 2018 when the party lost to the SLPP as one that will not be easily handed down to oblivion by members of the party.
‘’The hardship that is being experienced by most members of the party during this period cannot be over emphasized as many have suffered molestation, intimidation, physical attacks, harassment, injustice, loss of jobs, loss of homes and the loss of property etc ,’’ Mr. Sesay recounted.
He added that the suffering by members cuts across the board as many business men and women, forces men and women, school teachers, nurses, doctors, lawyers, civil servants and corporate workers perceived to be APC members, supporters, and sympathizers have suffered in one way or the other.
He took the opportunity to thank the Ernest Koroma led executive for their stewardship in the past ten or more years, noting that they have indeed worked very hard and gone a long way in making their invaluable contributions to the party”.
The letter continued that they sacrificed towards the party’s victory in 2007.
‘’Some of you, especially the Leader and Chairman of the party, Dr Ernest Bai Koroma, spent his hard earned money to ensure that the 2007 victory was earned. We must not ignore your great contributions because of the grave mistakes you made to cost us the presidency in 2018,’’ he maintained.
The APC veteran politician urged his comrades occupying the highest cadre in the party that they should see reason to occupy the defense line.
“I will not suggest you take the back seat because it would appear consigning you to a passive lane.
You should actively play the defense and allow new players to play the midfield and attack,’’
He also cited that besides their rich political experiences, Ernest Koroma and his cohorts have grown tougher with financial muscles to be able to tote the party and help to ensure its victory, come 2023.
He emphasized that if the party did it in 2007, it can do much better in 2023 with the current leadership being the defence.
He called for everybody to be brought on board if the party really means business.
He also spoke on a number of other issues and went on, in the light of the forgoing, Comrades all, there is need for a new leadership ,solid efforts at brining and maintaining peace more swiftly as the party would only win the 2023 elections when they set off to work now for the said victory.
See letter below:
AN OPEN LETTER TO THE NATIONAL EXECUTIVE OF THE ALL PEOPLES CONGRESS PARTY
24th July 2019
The National Executive, APC
Thro: The National Secretary General
National Secretariat
11A Old Railway Line
Brookfields
Freetown
Comrades All,
APPEAL FOR A CHANGE OF LEADERSHIP IN THE ALL PEOPLES CONGRESS PARTY
I greet you all in the name of the Almighty Allah; the living God. I believe that the date 4th April 2018 is one that will not be easily handed down to oblivion by members of the All Peoples Congress Party. More so, the period 4th April 2018 to date would not be easily forgotten by members, supporters, and sympathizers of the APC. The hardship that is being experienced by most members of the APC during this period cannot be overemphasized.
Many have suffered molestation, intimidation, physical attacks, harassment, injustice, the loss of relatives, the loss of jobs, the loss of homes, the loss of property, etc. The suffering cuts across the board as many business men and women, forces men and women, school teachers, nurses, doctors, lawyers, civil servants, corporate workers, etc, perceived to be APC members, supporters, and sympathizers have suffered in one way or the other. This period will continue to be soundly, if not painfully, remembered by all members of the APC Party.
Having said that let me take this opportunity to thank your leadership for your stewardship in the past ten or more years. You have indeed worked very hard and went a long way in making your own invaluable contributions to the party. You expended a lot of efforts and sacrifices towards the party’s victory in 2007. Some of you, especially the Leader and Chairman of the party, Dr Ernest Bai Koroma, spent his hard earned money to ensure that the 2007 victory was earned. We must not ignore your great contributions because of the grave mistakes you made to cost us the presidency in 2018.
Comrades, I strongly and sincerely believe that you should see reason to occupy the defence line. I will not suggest you take the back seat because it would appear consigning you to a passive lane. You should actively play the defence and allow new players to play the midfield and attack. I am utterly convinced that with you, the party can do far much better than without you. Besides your rich political experiences, you have grown tougher financial muscles to be able to tote the party and help to ensure its victory, come 2023. Indeed, with you Ernest Bai Koroma, Minkailu Mansaray, Osman Foday Yansanneh, and others in the defence line, another victory for the APC is really assured. You being the guys, who made the costly mistakes towards the 2018 elections, would be able to guide the party on how to appropriately correct those mistakes. On our party as members of the APC, those mistakes should not be allowed to continue to divide us at the detriment of the party. I must emphasize that if the party could do it in 2007, it can do much better in 2023 with the current leadership being the defence. We should not forget the fact that we need everybody on board if we really mean business as a party. In politics, everybody’s contribution and everybody’s vote matters.
In the light of the forgoing, Comrades all, I am appealing to you, the current leadership, to make way for a new leadership that will be able to easily bring everybody; I mean everybody, on board. I fervently hope that you will take my appeal in good faith in the best interest of the party. Without any iota of doubt, the only way we can get everybody on board is by getting a new leadership. A leadership that will attract and carry each and every member of the party; a leadership that has not harboured a grudge against any member of the party; a leadership which every single member of the party will feel free and comfortable to interact with; a leadership that knows how to adjust to the sensibilities of party members; a leadership that can create a network of interpersonal relationship among party members. As it stands, not every member of the party is comfortable with the current leadership. A good number of members including big guns within the party have lost trust and confidence in the current leadership. Inevitably, the current leadership must have individually or collectively, directly or indirectly, deliberately or inadvertently, victimized, marginalized, oppressed, suppressed, sidelined, dwarfed, demonized, or disadvantaged other party members who would, for now, find it difficult to enthusiastically participate in the party activities. These dissatisfied, disaffected, and disenchanted members of the party must be given a space that will make them feel free to operate within the party. I strongly believe that any attempt by your leadership to hold on to power will definitely threaten the cohesiveness of the party. You should therefore be magnanimous enough to give chance to other comrades with the face and ability to bring new ideas and innovations to the table. Let me make it very clear. I am in no way indicting your competence, nor do I doubt your ability to continue to lead the party; but there are grave misgivings about a united APC under your leadership.
Comrades, when the servant becomes not only the master but also the owner; then service delivery becomes a problem. This is exactly the posture which some of you have adopted. In a corporate governance setting, the owner regulates his business through corporate governors for effective and efficient management. All I am saying here is that let the bosses, masters, and/or owners don’t be the servants any longer. Let them allow other party comrades who have the energy, readiness and willingness to serve the party and the nation take up offices. In life, if you have done your best, let go and maintain your respect. The late President Siaka P.
Stevens was nicknamed ‘Pas ar die’ but he saw reason to give up power; you too can do the same. Comrades, you will agree with me that your leadership crash-landed the party during the 2018 general elections. A major contributing factor to that crash-landing was the many bad decisions taken by your leadership before the elections. You must have been traumatized as a result. You therefore needed time off to recover from the shock but that you have never had.
Instead, you have been working exhaustively and at the same time grappling with so many problems including verbal attacks and humiliation from the establishment. The only time, I believe, you can be at ease and realize the restoration of your full respect and dignity as enior citizens of this country will be when APC comes back to power. If APC were in power today, Ernest Koroma would have been much more popular than he was as President. He would have had unfettered time and privilege to enjoy his own legacies and the legacies of the APC. My fellow comrades, there should be no fear that if you leave office, the APC as a party will not rally around you in case of any undue advantage against you.
In truth, the ongoing Commissions of inquiry, the apparent selective justice by the Anti Corruption Commission, the imposition of the commissioner himself, the brutality of the police towards APC party members, the unpalatable court decisions against APC party members, the imposition of a speaker of parliament – together is a clear war of attrition against the leadership of the APC party. This war, it appears, has created a harrowing experience for your leadership. A corollary fact is your leadership’s inability to effectively defend and appropriately respond to the worse excesses against your members. It could be that the alarming allegations of corruption made by the President Rtd. Brig. Julius Maada Bio led government against the past regime must have given your leadership divided attention.
This is more so because most of the APC leadership, the most targeted group by the government, were in governance. Whatever the government is planning to do at the end of the Commissions of Inquiry, the APC does not know. But let us imagine a situation where at the eleventh hour a white paper emanating from the ongoing Commissions of Inquiry comes down heavily on the persons of interest; some of whom are the APC leadership. It will be disastrous. We should therefore avoid a situation where an unexpected adverse decision or action taken by the government against the so called persons of interest will plunge the APC party into a political morass. Take for instance the case of the National Publicity Secretary.
How can our national officer in the person of Cornelius Deveaux be allowed to go in hiding? What if other national officers are targeted the same way by the police? Are you all going to go in hiding? Will the executive continue with the seemingly affable approach they have started with in the case of Cornelius Deveaux? I thought members of the National Executive should have accompanied Mr. Deveaux to the police and found out the cause of his being a wanted man. Comrades, it is obvious that your leadership cannot take on the government on tough issues because you are being hunted. The party needs a new team that can even stand up for you in case of any undue advantage. There are situations in which however powerful you are, you need other strong people to stand up for you.
Truly speaking, the press releases, press conferences, the filing of cases in the courts of law, the boycotting of elections, the mobilization of party members for a show of strength, in my opinion, have not created the necessary impact to match the level of injustices APC members are suffering. The party cannot continue to be yearning for public sympathy. There is need for tough decisions and reactions from the leadership with regard to the injustices that are being meted out to the party and its members.
By the current trend of events, this government is a one term government because over one year down the line it has not still orientates itself with respect to the economic hardship in the country. Now that the country is heading towards a New Direction that is without a clearly defined destination or goal, everybody has to fasten their seatbelts because a crash may be imminent. The growing popularity around Dr. Samura Kamara is not much of a liking for him but a silent message that says, “We wished you were the president.” It is an open secret that majority of Sierra Leoneans are really suffering from terrible hardship. There are those pretending to be okay but the reality is out there at the markets for all to see. The first time in the history of my life an ordinary banana, not plantain, is sold for Le2, 000.00.
The issue of reviewing the party constitution should not be an impediment to holding a party convention. The selection clause was put there by its drafters in good faith. It was for situations in which it could be extremely difficult to hold elections. Over the years, the letter and spirit of that provision in the party constitution had been grossly misused and abused by some corrupt and discredited part officials who used it as an opportunity to deny popular candidates of their chances to party symbols or other party positions. That notwithstanding, there could be room for improvement on the 1995 party constitution but, in my mind, the constitution has nothing that is of adverse effect. We all know that even though the SLPP can freely organize and conduct all levels of party elections anywhere in the North, North West, and Western Regions, the APC cannot do the same in most parts of the South and Eastern
Regions; hence the inclusion of the selection clause in the 1995 APC constitution. The clause was never meant to deny fellow party members of their right to get party symbols or positions.
As a matter of urgency, the focus of every APC member now should be how to bring the party together rather than, all the time, concentrating on what is happening in the other camps. We should leave the government to grapple with its own problems. There is an opposition in Parliament to handle any misdirection; it’s their job. Let us take note of the major flaws in governance and stop running commentaries. The leadership should think of the ordinary Sierra Leoneans who never enjoyed anything or held any position while APC was in power but they are today part of the current stagflation in the country.
I want to also take this opportunity to advise APC party members and supporters to always take the right steps in trying to defend or protect other APC party members. Let the matters in the courts of law, in the police, in the Anti-corruption Commission, and in the Commissions of Inquiry be left in the hands of our capable lawyers. Party members could jump in when it becomes very clear that the law is being twisted. Our primary focus should be how to take the party forward. The APC must begin to win the 2023 general elections now and today. 2020 should not meet any doubt in our minds about that. All the APC needs for now is to restructure the party and move forward. The more this process is delayed, the more the party reduces its glaring chances of victory in 2023. Now more than ever before, we need a united party with one voice. If we fail to unite the party, we are headlong to another failure in 2023.
On my part, if it were not for the upside down approach and manner in which the Commissions of Inquiry were instituted, there is nothing wrong in asking people to give account of their stewardships after providing services; especially for the nation. The only thing, to investigate every member of the past regime including heads of parastatals is a precedent that says, it is not possible to have good people in governance. Meaning, every member of the current government is a potential candidate for future Commissions of Inquiry. The scope might even be broadened.
In conclusion Comrades, after one year and more in limbo, my message to you and through you to all APC members, supporters and sympathizers is a message of peace, unity, and reconciliation. This is the time for us as a party to:
i. Reconcile and consolidate our efforts in readiness for the 2023 general elections;
ii. Put together a strategic and rolling plan of action that will give the APC a comfortable victory in 2023;
iii. Re-examine the events before and during the 2018 general elections in a bid to indentify and avoid the mistakes that led the APC party to lose the presidency;
iv. Put all our difference aside; forgive and forget about those offences committed against some of us by fellow party members, especially those in executive positions;
v. Continue to endure the pains and sufferings we are currently going through;
vi. Do everything possible to reconcile and unite the APC party as a whole;
vii. Make sure that the 4th April 2018 disaster does not taint the new possibility of us winning the 2023 general elections;
viii. Immediately focus on reconstituting party structures at lower levels;
ix. Convene a National Delegate Conference not later than the end of second quarter, 2020 for the purpose of electing a national executive and a flag bearer. A time I expect the current leadership to willingly step aside and allow a free and fair choice of new leaders;
x. Give a break to blind patronage and stop defending the indefensible;
xi. Think about the millions of Sierra Leoneans who never benefited while the APC was in power but today are suffering because APC is out of power; and
xii. Put all our personal misgivings behind us.
Fellow APC members, we have always said that the party is above each and every one of us. We should fervently believe in that and work towards uniting the party. I have simply expressed my personal opinion on issues I believe are pertinent to the welfare of the party. I am not an associate of any group or cabal. I operate independently and alone with no consultation. I take full responsibility for this piece.
I would like to thank you all and crave your indulgence to give this letter a careful thought in the best interest of the great APC party.
Yours truly,
Alhaji M. A. Sesay
Honorary Executive Member
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