STATEMENT

From :       THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 2000/ 2004  Sierra Leone People’s Party ( SLPP ) UK & Ireland Branch —

To :        All Members

Sierra Leone People’s Party ( SLPP ) UK & Ireland Branch

&   All Sierra Leoneans

 

YOU may have heard or witnessed the attempt by Messrs Mohamed Haji Kella, Josiah Lahai and Mrs Agnes Dugba Macauley in the name of the Elections Committee of this Branch Party under the misguidance of elders John Sorbah Green and Matthew Ganda and Secretary General Harold Saffa to conduct executive elections of this Branch Party on the 30^th May, 2004.

 

YOU may have heard that their undemocratic and unpatriotic attempt at conducting Branch Party executive elections coincided in time, venue and date with a General Meeting convened by the Executive Committee at Africana Hall, Ashwin Street in London, UK.

 

You may have heard that in the absence of an updated Membership List and Voters List and with the hasty, politically-unwise and legally unfair application of Article 6.1.9 of the new Constitution of this Branch Party, the attempt by the Elections Committee headed by Mrs Agnes Dugba Macauley to conduct executive elections of this Branch Party on the 30^th May 2004 was marred by controversy resulting from the disenfranchisement of about 93 % of our general membership.

 

You may have heard or witnessed the fact that in the resulting controversy at Africana Hall on the 30^th May 2004 Chairman Samuel Jonjo was assaulted by Messrs Mohamed Haji Kella and Josiah Lahai and Chairman Jonjo’s public address system costing �1000= 00 and which this Branch Party had used for all previous meetings was thrown outside and damaged by Mr Josiah Lahai in the full view of witnesses.

 

You may have heard or witnessed the fact that in addition to disenfranchising over 90 % of our more than 700 general membership and refusing them access and entry into Africana Hall on the 30^th May 2004, even Chairman Samuel Jonjo was denied access and entry into the hall for over three hours by a gang of non-Sierra Leonean thugs or bouncers hired by Mr Mohamed Haji Kella until a detachment of local British police intervened.

 

You may have heard or witnessed the fact that in his comments before departing from the hall, Chairman Jonjo’s statement to the police and to all Sierra Leoneans present was that “he cannot participate in elections that are flawed and that amount to unjust disenfranchisement of over 90 % of the general membership of the SLPP UK & Ireland Branch. That as a political party worth its salt and in the light of the less-than-expected performance of the party at the May-2004 local government elections in Sierra Leone, the SLPP everywhere in the world should open and be seen to open its door to all Sierra Leoneans, not close it.”

 

You may have heard or witnessed the fact that as a result of this discriminatory, shameful and unpatriotic exercise a so-called “SLPP UK & Ireland Branch executive elections” was held with about fifty ( 50 ) voters present and as a result of which all candidates for the 14 executive posts of this Branch Party went unopposed with the exception of the post of Women’s Secretary for which the winner Mrs Beatrice Wusie polled only 29 votes.

 

DECLARATION

 

In view of the issues and events hereinabove narrated, WE the undersigned Executive Committee members of the SLPP UK & Ireland Branch, conscious of our faithful and loyal duties to the SLPP and our patriotic responsibilities to Sierra Leone and to all Sierra Leoneans hereby declare the following :

 

1.    THAT stage-managed and Soviet-style unopposed elections that

disenfranchise over 90 % of our general membership is not,

and cannot be a tradition of the Sierra Leone People’s Party ( SLPP )

any where in the world in the democratic climate of the 21^st Century.

 

2.          THAT the aforesaid elections purported to have been held in the name

of the SLPP UK & Ireland Branch on the 30^th May 2004 with the evil

inspiration of Messrs John Sorbah Green, Matthew Ganda and Secretary

General Harold Saffa was a travesty of democracy and consequently the

results totally unacceptable and unrecognised to over 90 % of our general

membership who have been unjustly disenfranchised and to us who are the

constitutionally -elected and lawful custodians of this Branch Party.

 

3.          THAT arrangements for proper, free and fair elections with franchise for

all registered seven hundred ( 700 ) and more members of the SLPP UK &

Ireland Branch shall be announced in due course following which

expeditious dates for democratic executive elections of this Branch Party and handing-over to a new Executive Committee will be announced.

 

 

……..                              ……..

                           Samuel B. Jonjo                                Sahr Y. O. Lebbie

                             ( Chairman )                                    ( Vice Chairman)

 

 

  ………                 …….                   ……..

 Sahr Stephen Kabbah               Malikie Saffa                  Bockarie Marah

(Organising Secretary )      ( Asst. Organising Sect.)     ( Financial Secretary )