The opposition, All People’s Congress (APC) is mounting pressure on the government to replace Edmond Alpha, the recently appointed and approved Chief Electoral Commissioner (CEC) with another person who they will accept to conduct and supervise the 2028 election.
However, it is not yet clear whether government will bow to APC’s pressure or continue with the new appointee.
APC became suspicious of the new election boss owing to his some-how bizarre method of appointment compounded by his jubilation with SLPP stalwarts immediately after securing parliamentary approval.
APC politicians also claimed that Edmond Alpha was not properly appointed owing to lack of proper consultations with leaders of political parties as lawfully provided.
The Constitution of Sierra Leone, 1991 provides that leaders of all political parties should be consulted on the appointment of the CEC so that they can have a say although may not have a way.
The consultation does not place government on a weak position but ensure that every political stakeholder has a say in the appointment of the election boss so that any electoral outcome will be accepted in the future.
But, according to APC politicians, such constitutional provision was circumvented during the appointment of Edmond Alpha claiming that they were not consulted as provided by the law.
Moreover, claims that Edmond Alpha says that 2028 elections will not be different from 2023 is being constantly referred to by opposition politicians and therefore send panic waves in the opposition camp.
APC fear that there will be rigging and call for the replacement of the new CEC by way of a boycott to restore faith in the electoral process.
Government’s determination to retain Edmond Alpha led to a sudden APC’s walkout of parliament and local councils across the country to compel government respond to their demands.
They look back at the manner in which the erstwhile CEC, Mohamed Konneh was appointed arguing that there was no proper consultation of leaders of political parties.
APC’s executive officials claimed that only ex-President Ernest Bai Koroma was called on phone and Konneh’s academic papers taken to the APC Secretariat on the instructions of Koroma, but that alone, they asserted, did not properly constitute a consultation according to the real meaning of the law.
In such a situation, the argument goes, it is quite difficult for the then election boss to set aside government’s interest arguing that it is the case in the 2023 election.
Besides, Konneh was also a public officer and such post disqualified him from being appointed CEC.
At the time he was asked to head the Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone, Konneh was the head of Financial Intelligence Unit in the Ministry of Finance, and there were fears that the scale would be tilted in favour of the incumbent party. The fear became a reality when SLPP emerged winner of the elections.
The APC is similar jittery of another defeat in the 2028 elections and demand that persons conducts the forthcoming election.
APC’s demands are open to negotiation, and their main demand is to see that the current election chief step down.
APC politicians, by their stance, are not ready to part into the election until Edmond Alpha is replaced with a new election chief.
Investigation conducted by this press confirms that government is almost bowing to pressure to respond to the APC’s demand of a new election boss to be on the driving seat, but who should be the new election chief that will take over from Edmond Alpha. Government is yet to name another election boss, but public views and concerns hold that an election boss should be someone with a neutral background and not connected to any political party either SLPP or APC.
Several APC politicians who have expressed their views on the appointment of an election chief to replace Edmond Alpha argue strongly that the head of the election agency should not have any leaning on a political party, tribe or region adding that it was the mode of appointment for past electoral chiefs who had conducted past elections.
Despite criticisms of the 1996 elections, the outcome was accepted by all political parties that took part in the elections because the CEC, James Jonah was a Krio.
James Jonah had also stayed out of the country for a considerable period, and his leaning with any political party was in big doubt.
He was only doubted a bit when he took up appointment as Minister of Finance with the government which he announced winner of the elections.
Subsequently, Christiana Thorpe who was also a Krio was appointed in 2006 to conduct the 2007 elections which was contested by Solomon Ekuma Berewa of the SLPP and former President, Ernest Koroma of the APC.
The election, though was somewhat controversial, was accepted because the election boss had no link with a political party, tribe or region.
Thorpe also conducted and supervised the 2012 election which Ernest Koroma also won with a wide margin.
The people and the election stakeholders also accepted since Christiana Thorpe belonged to none of the upcountry tribes.
However, it was during Koroma’s reign in post-war democracy that an upcountry man, Mohamed N’fa Alie Conteh was made Chief Electoral Commissioner ahead of the 2018 elections.
The genealogy of upcountry men as electoral chiefs continued when Mohamed Conteh was replaced by Moahmed Konneh to conduct the 2023 elections.
From the outset, opposition politicians were not comfortable with the appointment of Mohamed Konneh being a typical Southerner as many said he would not betray his tribesmen in the conduct of the elections, and that suspicion fueled the post-election controversy which has lingered to this day.
Despite calls to do away with the 2023 elections so that the country could move on, the vast majority of APC members and supporters were not convinced that the elections were free and fair and had repeatedly called for either cancellation of the votes or a rerun.
The suspicion, according to political analysts, was strengthened by the fact that Mohamed Konneh was a Southerner and could have done everything possible to please his tribesmen.
Konneh is gone, but at the seat, there is another Southerner, Edmond who has taken over the responsibility of conducting and supervising the 2028 election, but it is a move that is bitterly opposed by APC politicians who have no trust in the election chief.
They have vacated their seats in parliament and councils nationwide to compel government get another appointee to carry out the sacred duty of holding a honest and credible electoral process.
The questions that are now on the lips of every Sierra Leonean is to see whether government would accept APC’s demand for a new commissioner, and what will be the situation if another commissioner is appointed.
But, the biggest of all questions is that will SLPP change their plan after a new election boss is elected, the answer is a big NO. SLPP will never change their plan of remaining at State House after the 2028 election since they have worked for it.