The public is concerned about the training of marshalls by Political parties for the security of their parties and the safety of candidates especially flag-bearers.
In 2023 elections, the marshalls have the responsibility of securing flag-bearers of political parties and candidates. It is a clear case of subversion of police power in a civilised and democratic state. Leaderships of political parties have justified the training owing to a complete lack of confidence in the security apparatus.
The police and the army have always been accused of and vilified for protecting only members of the ruling party, the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP). Other members of the public see an element of truth in the justification provided by political parties.
But, Deputy Head of Police Media, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Samuel Saio Conteh told this press that the SLP would never allow Marshalls to handle security of political parties. ASP Conteh sees the emergence of marshalls as a subversion of police power. He argues that SLP is the only legitimate institution that should maintain peace and security of the state.
He cited a fundamental provision in the constitution found in section 155 which says nobody shall raise a police agency except by an Act of parliament. ASP Conteh subscribes to the notion that the training of deployment of marshalls in political parties means the creation of parallel police forces. He is of the view that such a situation would lead to conflicts and violence in the country’s body politic.
Although the Deputy Head of police media frowns at the existence of marshalls, he is yet to point out any action police would take to halt the emergence and growth of the marshalls. But a teacher and local activist, Yusif Bangura holds a contrary view. Bangura cited instances in which the police have failed to display neutrality.
He also argues that a partisan police force has shaken the people’s confidence who have opted to have their own security personnel. The lack of neutrality might have led to a situation in which political parties have their own marshalls for their security. Bangura recounted several events in which the police have presented themselves as a police force for the ruling party and nothing else.
When SLPP Government came to power in 2018, Bangura went on, the police switched sides with the government. He cited the incident that occurred in parliament between members of the main opposition, All People’s Congress (APC) and the ruling party, (Sierra Leone People’s Party) in 2018. Bangura firmly believes that the police exhibit no neutrality in their quest to restore order in parliament.
The police, he continued, brutalised only APC members of parliament leaving many of them to seek admission in hospitals. “No SLPP parliamentarian was subjected to any form of humiliation at that time,” he said.
It was open that APC parliamentarians were humiliated in public. They were dragged out of parliament with the application of brute force. Honourable Paran Tarawallie, clerk of parliament issued orders to the police, and they complied. Bangura expected the police to have shown a problem-solving approach within the context of community policing.
The police, he said, were not supposed to have complied with the orders of the clerk of parliament. He argued that the police have a separate command structure and that police department is not and cannot be an extension of parliament.
In another instance, Bangura went on, the police showed no neutrality in a conflict that broke out between the APC and the SLPP in the recent bye-election in a constituency in the Western Area Rural district. Although the APC candidate, Kadijah Davies emerged the winner of the bye election, the violence that broke out is still told today.
During the conduct of the first bye-election, the violence that erupted led to the destruction of ballot boxes and other election materials. In the investigation that followed, the police arrested only members of the opposition. Key APC figures including Karmoh Kabba, former Minister of political and public Affairs were held in prison custody for months.
Most SLPP thugs notably ‘ARATA’ were never held responsible for their actions. He and his colleagues went free as they enjoyed the largesse of power. A culture of impunity seemed to have been deeply ingrained in the culture of politics through the absence of police neutrality.
In May 2019, the police also put up partisanship when the twin verdicts that stripped ten parliamentary seats of the opposition were simultaneously handed down by two high courts in Freetown. The police placed APC headquaters in Brookfields community under siege on the day the verdicts were delivered.
Trigger-happy police officers pulled the trigger at APC officials. The party offices were smoked by teargas canisters threatening the safety of party officials including the APC Secretary-General, Ambassador, Foday Osman Yanssaneh.
It was widely reported that APC supporters were merely jubilating in their party office on the day of the verdicts. Their jubilation was cut short when the police pulled the trigger. By their actions, Bangura holds the view that the police have relegated themselves to stooges of politicians.
Apart from the display of partisanship in issues concerning the ruling and opposition parties especially the main opposition, police brutality in opposition strongholds have also raised a big cloud of suspicion. A brutal police raid was carried out at Rosengbeh village in Tonkolili district where a commercial motorist was brutally murdered.
The police camouflaged their brutality under the guise of a raid on Marijuana dealers. Investigation revealed that the police deliberately shot dead the commercial motorist for his refusal to hand over the motor cycle keys. They attempted to justify their lethal action saying that the motor cycle is part of proceeds of the sale of Marijuana although they offered no evidence to prove their claim.
Apart from the fatal injury, money and properties of community residents were also targeted. Bedrooms and parlours were broken into, and huge sums of money allegedly carted away. The police have been widely accused of participating in the loot.
But, they claimed that the money was also proceeds of cannabis. The Local Unit Commander in charge of the police division was suspended indefinitely when he spoke on the media about the illegality of the operation. The LUC said on the media that he was never informed of the police operation, a move that ran contrary to SLP operational guidelines.
In June last year, police also showed the most naked brutality in the north-eastern headquaters of Makeni, the home of former President Ernest Bai Koroma. Six people were gunned down after a crowd tried to resist EDSA (Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority) from taking away a 1.65 KVA generator installed in Makeni city.
The machine was taken away with the use of force that resulted into heavy casualties. The combined effect of police brutality and partiality has considerably weakened public confidence in the police to the core.
By their actions, the public have come to see the police as government’s puppets. The police continue to face serious indictment by the public for serving any government in power at any point in time.
The policing ideal in a democracy must have been that the police must strive to meet the demands of justice, and not the demands of politicians. The police must be loyal to the constitution and the relevant laws and not to politicians.
The police must be loyal to the state and not government because a government comes and goes but the state remains.