Paper work has been completed at the international stage, and ECOMOG (ECOWAS Monitoring Group) troops are set to deploy at Lungi military base in Sierra Leone, reports say.
ECOMOG is the military wing of the Economic Community Of West African states (ECOWAS), a body set up in 1975 to promote trade, commerce and security in the sub-region.
ECOMOG’s role in Liberia and Sierra Leone in ending its brutal wars in the 1990s and the restoring peace and democracy is one of the organisation’s key achievements in the Mano River basin.
The troops, sources say, would use its warships to enter Freetown, Sierra Leone’s capital to guard and secure the people as Sierra Leone Army and police has seemingly failed to live up to their mandate.
ECOMOG’s facilities in Lungi, according to reports, are now close to completion as the forces prepare to arrive.
Threats of protest coupled with the November, 2023 attacks on police and military facilities Freetown and the deteriorating security situation might have prompted ECOWAS to send a stability force to Sierra Leone.
The country’s main prison on Pademba Road in Freetown was also broken into letting approximately 1, 800 inmates on the loose.
Most were hard core criminals and ex-fighters serving lengthy jail terms and others in for imprisonment for life.
A large number of serving soldiers were also reported to have taken part in the attacks worsening an already polarised situation.
The forces however seem divided along tribal, regional and political lines making it difficult to counter any insurgency with one voice. Hate messages and threats issued on social media also played a big role in undermining state security.
A month ago, a social media group known as ‘Wi Yard,’ warned every Sierra Leonean to stay indoors as the military would stage a protest against the authorities. Government’s inability to counter the threatening messages kept everyone in especially businessmen who locked their shops all day long.
Sierra Leone’s current political situation, according to opposition politicians, is fuelled by the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) through its divisive rule of a country once known for inter-marriages and peaceful co-existence.
Such values used to be manifested in public institutions which accounted for the peace ans stability the country enjoyed over the years.
Situation is no longer the same as such values had been thrown out of the window as North-Westerners fail to operate on the same political page with South-easterners.
It was this grudge that erupted in the November attacks which claimed the lives of dozens of military officers as well as civilians.
The carting away of countless number of arms and ammunition and the attackers’ unknown whereabouts represent the biggest threat to peace and security. No one knows what is in the attackers’ minds and from where and when they will strike.
Such fear and apparent police and military weaknesses to respond to the threats would prompt the deployment of an international force to cover the security gap.
A meeting has been reportedly held by ECOMOG with the police chief, William Fayia Sellu about the deployment of ECOMOG troops to the country. Recently, President Julius Maada Bio was in Nigeria where he held discussions with ECOWAS authorities to have an ECOMOG force in.
Subsequent reports however stated that Bio was less supportive of the deployment of the troops after signing as one of his key allies at ECOWAS, Mohamed Ibn Chambas was laid off following bribery scandals.
But, Bio’s resistance to the deployment of ECOMOG troops was foiled when the Chairman, ECOWAS Chairman, Ahmed Bola Tinubu, Nigeria’s recently elected President took a firm stance.
ECOMOG ‘s deployment to Sierra Leone is part of ECOWAS’s broad mission to stabilise the country as well as other countries in West Africa where military coups have taken place quite lately.
Burkina Fasso, Mali, Niger, Gabon and neighbouring Guinea have military governments after the overthrow of democratically elected leaders. ECOWAS, five years back, has been pushing for the creation of a permanent ECOMOG base for a standing army who will restore democratic governments when toppled by the khaki boys.
For Sierra Leone, it is not a military takeover but a constitutional coup as claimed by opposition politicians as the incumbent candidate, President Julius Maada Bio refused to allow a run off for fear of losing the elections.
Other credible sources also indicated that President Bio had lost the elections but did not give up power to the opposition candidate, Dr Samura Kamara who has been widely considered winner.
The Chief Electoral Commissioner, Mohamed Kenewui Konneh announced the election results in favour of Bio who appointed him. He announced 56.17% of the total votes leaving 43.83% for the opposition, All People’s Congress (APC), a result that has been one of the most politically contentious issues.
International and local election observation missions condemned the polls saying it “lacked transparency.”
The processes and activities, according to the observers that led to the announcement of the results, are riddled with violence and significant irregularities with the opposition members calling for either a rerun or run off for an actual winner to be ascertained.
The EU, UN, ECOWAS, Commonwealth, AU, Carter Centre, G7+ and other election observers condemned the election processes and activities calling for the publication of the results by polling stations and districts.
The call was also re-echoed by the APC, but was one the Bio regime never accepted and the resistance continued to the present time.
The local observer group, NEW (National Elections Watch) also discredited June polls as shown by the Process and Result Verification for Transparency (PRVT) model which has stood the test of time since it was adopted in several African countries in the 1970s with Kenya being one of the shining examples.
It also proved to be a reliable method in election projection since its introduction to Sierra Leone’s elections in past years. It was used for several elections including 2018 polls through which Julius Maada Bio became President of Sierra Leone.
NEW chief, Marcella Samba said in an interview that “no candidate met the 55% constitutional threshold to avoid a run off.”
Marcella came under constant threat by SLPP supporters, a situation that forced her out of the country and temporally stayed in the UK. She is back to Sierra Leone, but still fears for her life.
Like other West African countries, Sierra Leone has been torn apart by political tension, and signs that the country might implode on its own remain clear.
The stand off between officials of the ruling and opposition political parties still goes unabated as they failed to agree on a rerun. APC supporters wanted to see another election within a short time owing to alleged irregularities and election rigging.
Disenfranchisement of hundreds of voters in opposition strongholds also plays a great part in the conflict between the two parties.
Fearing that the political conflict might degenerate further, the international community facilitated a dialogue between the two political sides as they got them into signing a peace deal to end the post-election stalemate that has badly affected the country.
A communiqué is currently in place and one of its resolutions calls for the setting up of an Election Investigation Committee to examine the June elections and make recommendations to government.
While government says they will not accept a rerun, APC insists that only a rerun will keep them away from the streets, a situation that has warranted the deployment of ECOMOG.