Dissent

The arrest, arraignment, and remand of Lansana Dumbuya under the watchful eyes of the SLPP for merely making statements that inferred the 2023 elections which Maada Bio was declared winner, was rigged and stolen from his APC party, has cast a dark cloud over a country governed by the current Chairman of ECOWAS. It raises numerous questions about democracy, the rule of law, and human rights.

In a democratic state which is true to the ideals of real democracy, the unfortunate arrest of APC's secretary general shouldn't have happened. When the ruling government resorts to arbitrarily arresting and detaining opposition figures for making political statements which discredits their power, experts of democracy warn that such a situation if not contained, may destabilize the state's body politic.

SLPP is supposed to know that. How on earth would a leader who's providing leadership at the regional level allow such brazen attack on democracy within his territory? The answer to this question is critical. 4 Sahel states have withdrawn their membership from ECOWAS because they believe the regional bloc has outlived its purpose and influence. In order for Maada Bio and ECOWAS to regain their trust, they must prove that the principles they stand for are being protected within member states. You might be wondering if that is the case in Sierra Leone. The answer is obvious.

Although bail has been granted to Lansana Dumbuya, his arrest and detention paints a terrible picture of what life looks like under SLPP's rule. It doesn't undo the obvious political machination that was meant to keep him behind bars for a moment, in order to send a message of strength.

Democracy is the ultimate system of government that gives the people freedom and rights to enjoy. The government should stop toying with.

Lansana Dumbuya, APC's secretary general has dragged the party into another situation that necessitated a whopping fine from the Political Parties Regulation Commission (PPRC).

As the administrative head of the party and a legal practitioner of over 15 years standing, many would assume his knowledge of the law would guide him from making profane and incendiary statements that would attract sanctions from the Commission that regulates political parties. But he disappointed everyone who had so much faith in him.

This is not the first time statements made by powerful individuals in the APC have attracted fines. Section 39(1) of the Political Parties Act of 2022 unequivocally prohibits the use of profane, incendiary, and inflammatory statements that would disintegrate public order. Political events by parties should not be used as a ground to incite or undermine tranquility. Being a lawyer with so much experience and grounding in the laws of Sierra Leone, Dumbuya's utterances were supposed to be within the prescribed ambit permissible by the Act.

However, he veered from the purpose of the meeting and made statements against the sitting president of Sierra Leone, alleging he is a thief who stole the 2023 elections. Once he ventured into that realm, he automatically defeated the purpose of the Mammoth Meeting the party had convened for its members to admonish them on the lower level election that was around the corner.

Videos have surfaced online showing some members of the executive trying to caution him from venturing further into making statements that would make PPRC come howling with a whopping fine. The writings on the wall was clear, but Dumbuya who seems to be a man that likes to be in the spotlight for controversy, was not ready to back down. He doubled-down on his mission to rile up supporters in making chants that were unnecessary and provocative. He ought to know better, but he didn't care about the ramifications.

There was an agenda for the meeting, but Dumbuya made it entirely about Maada Bio and the disputed 2023 elections which still cast a shadow over our country's body politic. His miscalculation and obstinance will cost the party NLE 200,000 in fine.

Laws are made to regulate conduct, serve as a deterrent, and sanction violations. That's exactly what the Politcal Parties Regulation Commission is doing in enforcing the Political Parties Act of 2022 in order to create sanity and maintain public order.

APC's mammoths meeting had an agenda. It was a moment when the party's leadership was supposed to admonish its members to conduct themselves within the confines of the party's constitutional provisions as they gear to commence their lower level elections. That was the purpose of the meeting. It wasn't meant to be a charade where Zainab Sheriff would be given a Platform to make statements that deviated from the purpose of the mammoth Meeting.

Once she was accorded that privilege, she went on the rampage to talk about the irregularities that marred the 2023 elections, claiming the peoples' votes were stolen. While her claims have profound elements of truth in it, the timing and place was inappropriate. It was a distraction that tilted focus from the what was discussed about the lower level Elections to the rippling effects that ensued after she made that statement.

PPRC has slammed a NLE 150,000 fine on her, citing a violation of section 39(1) of the Political Parties Act of 2022 which prohibits incendiary, inciting, or inflammatory statements that can undermine public order. Although she contends she was within her right to express her thoughts, PPRC thinks otherwise.

The APC should focus on organising a democratic lower level election with the highest level of transparency and accountability. Furthermore, the party's leadership should be committed to adhering to sections 39(1) of the Political Parties Act by cautioning its leaders who are given platforms to address the general membership to do so within the ambit of the law. They need to show leadership by establishing guidelines which will direct their public engagements, that they would adhere to in order to insulate the party from further fines by the PPRC.

Zainab Sheriff has no position in the APC. As far as we know, she is actually nobody in the party. It is surprising to note that she was given a Platform to address members of a party in which she holds no executive position or whatsoever. Those who granted her access to do so should bow their heads in shame. They are bringing the APC party into disrepute, and they're using their very hands to cause unnecessary distraction at a time when they should be focused on the lower level elections.

What happened at Attouga mini stadium exposes an anomaly within the leadership structure of the party. Speakers were not briefed before they went on stage. They had no coordinated agenda to focus on the purpose of the meeting. Their thoughts were incoherent and mostly directed at the ruling party and the president of the republic. That was a travesty. It defeated the very purpose of the meeting.