Sierra Leone: Expressing his dissatisfaction over the government intention to depoliticize local council election, the Deputy Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Honourable Ibrahim Ben-Kargbo has said that such a process will lead to a one party state.
He made this disclosure during a snappy press briefing at his Wellington Street Office on Thursday 15th April 2021. “We are not going to accept the proposal for local council elections to be conducted on a non-political party basis. It will kill the smaller parties that currently have Councilors and Mayors and also destroy the country’s hard earned democracy,” he maintained.
According to the Deputy Opposition Leader in Parliament, late President Ahmad Tejan-Kabba attempted to bring the policy on non-political party local council elections but later saw the need to scrap it due to some protest from right thinking Sierra Leoneans including himself (Hon I.B Kargbo).
He maintained that all elections should be conducted and competed in a democratic way, explaining that “if we begin to encourage a system of election to be conducted on a nine party basis we are nursing the foundation for a one party state which is not good for our democracy.”
Hon I.B Kargbo assured journalists that the APC party will continue to support Legislations that are in the interest of the people and country and will kick against any bad laws including the depoliticizing of the local council elections, which they believe is the nursing grounds to a one party state.
“We will continue to discuss the issue even if it takes us to go international,” he said, calling on President Bio not to allow those unpatriotic people that are coming up with the idea, as the country’s democracy must be respected.
The Deputy Opposition Leader added they will be educating the public about the bad law that is in the pipeline and that some of them (MPs) will be coming up with private member motions against some of the ills that are happening across the country.
According to the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the Coalition for Change and also Member of Parliament representing Constituency 028 Honourable Sahr Charles it is their party’s (C4C) position for the law to remain as it is for political parties to actively participate in local council election.
“We are strongly against the removal of political parties from local council election. It is the highest level of participation of political parties in election,” he said, explaining that almost all the political parties were able to submit candidates for the 2018 election and not all were able to submit at the Parliamentary nor the Presidential level.
He maintained that if someone believes he is that popular without a political party to contest for local council elections then let him contest as an Independent candidate, noing that local council is the strong hold of political parties across the country.
AMK/16/04/2021