By Marcus Bangura
The hotly debated and trending issue of the day in the hearts and minds of Sierra Leoneans is not the state of the economy or Kush, but the Tripartite investigation outcome and adherence to the National Unity Agreement, signed between President Bio of the SLPP-led government and Dr Samura Kamara of the main opposition, All Peoples Congress at the Bintumani Hotel, following the landmark peace conference between 16th and 18th October, resulting to the National Unity Agreement.
It would be recalled that the Tripartite Committee was borne out of international mediation efforts by the International Community following the controversial June 24 elections and the impasse between the Government of Sierra Leone (GoSL) and the main opposition party, the All Peoples Congress, which resulted in the National Unity Agreement.
The peace conference between the government and the main opposition was brokered by the Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion, facilitated by the Commonwealth through the Economic Community of Wes African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU). The team arrived in Sierra Leone and mediated between President Bio’s ruling SLPP and the main opposition APC party in the post-election dialogue to end the political impasse in the country regarding the outcome of the June 24 elections.
Certain factors, events and challenges before and after the elections triggered the establishment of the Tripartite in Sierra Leone. Among other things, political disputes over election outcomes and the criticisms levelled against the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone (ECSL) by the main opposition party; difficult macroeconomic conditions hemmed with pervasive corruption at all governments, poor infrastructure quality and lack of skilled labour; above all, lack of unity and strategic clarity within the main opposition APC, affecting negotiation were serious challenges that contributed to the need for Tripartite to foster unity and to address the significant hitches. (Source: Capilot)
The big trending buzz of the day revolves around the integrity of President Bio of the SLPP-led Government and Dr Samura Kamara of the main opposition APC regarding sticking to the National Unity and Tripartite. Either side of the aisle is expected to stomach the outcome because they have manifested mutual assent in a common intention to do or not to do something.
The June 24 elections and their aftermaths have held the nation to ransom for the past year, and citizens look forward to seeing the controversy nip in the bud.
Prior to the June elections, the political atmosphere was characterised by violence, which stimulated Philip Barton, the Permanent Under-Secretary of the Commonwealth, to visit Sierra Leone on 27th May 2023 and have talks with the two leading presidential candidates, President Bio and Dr Samura Kamara. The political atmosphere then was characterised by violence, which stimulated Philip Barton, the Permanent Under-Secretary of the Commonwealth, to visit Sierra Leone on 27th May 2023 and had talks with the two leading presidential candidates, President Bio and Dr Samura Kamara. Consequently, the Commonwealth Under-Secretary had President Bio of the SLPP-led Government, and Dr Samura Kamara of the Main Opposition signed a National Pledge in which they agreed to ensure free, fair, transparent and peaceful elections. The move was lauded as impressive towards the June 24 elections, marred with political violence in the build-up.
Despite the Commonwealth’s efforts to carve a national pledge for peace and free, fair, and transparent elections, the outcome led to the convening of a peace dialogue mediated by the International Community, which in turn gave rise to a Tripartite Investigation Committee and a National Peace Agreement.
As Bio and Samura are caught on the Tripartite and National Unity Agreement, citizens’ hearts knock on ribs as to what the atmosphere would be like after the Tripartite Committee pronounces the outcome of the Election Investigation Team.
As viewed by political analysts, establishing the Tripartite to investigate the June 24 elections shows that Sierra Leone’s democracy has been waning recently. It needs calibration and reconfiguration due to political polarization and a complete lack of political tolerance or bigotry among the people, who have been polarised and injected with hypodermic political sentiments at the expense of successive elections since 1996. A flow we need to maintain and respect for the good of all, since the constitutional arrangement of the country is based on term limit of five years through the mandate of the people from who political power is derived.
In conclusion, the June 24 polls have come and gone. However, it is still caught in a web of uncertainty with the deep-rooted controversy surrounding it, as it has allegedly been branded for lacking integrity and accountability, for which the International Committee pressed for a Tripartite Committee. The Committee is at its end, with Sierra Leoneans enthusiastically awaiting its recommendations tomorrow, June 19th 2024. According to sources, two parties, Bio and Samura, had agreed to accept the outcome of the election investigation by the Tripartite Committee.
Be it what it may, the people of Sierra Leone yarn for democracy, peace, and security more than anything else amidst the struggle and resilience in the face of adversity. Sierra Leoneans frown at reflecting on the past of a war-torn country whose scars are still fresh in our minds.
