Is Sierra Leone brewing up for a political boiling point ?

Our Peace & Freedom Cost Too Much Blood and Agony to Relinquish Them to Cheap Rhetoric.

Sierra Leone’s 2028 general election might sound like light years away, just like how a day or week in politics could be a long time. The cyclical life span of politics can be ephemeral. Can you believe that President Bio is already halfway into his second and final term in office? Is this why some leaders are reluctant to leave office, because their terms go so fast? It’s no wonder some of these leaders tweak, fidget and conduct political alchemy to postpone their political expiry dates, by any means necessary? Even with national constitutions as guardrails, some still find routes for comebacks, like we’ve seen in Ghana, Nigeria and other countries. Some use the remote control option to elect successors in their own image as a last resort. This just shows how lethal and addictive the twin forces of power and greed can be, even in moderation.

Is Sierra Leone’s politics becoming a playground for desperados?

Since the 2023 general elections, Sierra Leone has become a theatre fracturing at the seams. The political polarisation could not be overemphasised, as it seems to have gone into overdrive. In simple terms, our politics is fast becoming the biggest employer of desperados.

The relief that followed the Tripartite recommendations seems to have fizzled into thin air; as if it never took place. Even before casting the first ballot, the warnings, threats, prophesies, innuendoes, etc relating to 2028 elections by both parties is slowly beginning to feel doomsday esque. But why?

We have witnessed people being frogmarched and locked up for crimes against humanity, like insults, incitement, sedition etc. Judging by our polarised political canvas, it is not surprising that the majority of the culprits has been from the opposition and dissenting voices to the government. The opinion that the demarcation between the various arms of government, and especially between the legislative and the judiciary are becoming blurring with osmotic propensity.

The suspicion for such a penchant is rooted in the belief that he who pays the piper calls the tune. This has been the case with every successive government in power, throughout our political history

It is common knowledge that the incarceration of Zainab Sherriff, Lansana Dumbuya (APC Secretary General), et al charged with alleged incitement, insults and etc has not helped to bridge the polarity of our political canvas. Accusations of intimidation, witch hunt, suppression of freedom of speech, false imprisonment etc are top currency on social media. My allergy to constitutional matters prevents me from expressing an opinion here.

So, why are both APC and SLPP so desperate?
With Donald Trump’s 2nd term, we see how” revenge politics” has insidiously become the modus operandi in his back yard. On 20th September 2025, Trump expressed frustration in a social media post that “nothing is being done” to his foes. He wrote “what about Comey, Adam “Shifty” Schiff, Leticia???”, referring to former FBI Director James Comey, Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif, and New York Attorney General Leticia James respectively. “They are all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done”. We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility”, “They impeached me twice, and indicted me (5 times, over nothing. Justice must be served, now”, Trump said. Many people believe that Pam Bondi, the US Attorney General lost her job recently for not doing enough to dish out Trumps “vengeful retributive justice” against his perceived foes. Revenge in any form is never justifiable, as it is driven by emotion rather than reason. Revenge often escalates harm, undermines moral and social order. Vengeance only perpetuates cycles of violence, escalate conflict and create further harm. It’s never about justice and can hinder healing and reconciliation.

With barely 24 months to go, is this what is driving the desperation for power that is displayed by the SLPP and APC? Is the desperation grounded in the fear of revenge politics? When president Bio facilitated imitated the Commission of Inquiry (COI), his critics and detractors described it as a witch hunt dyed in “Revenge Politics”.

The public is now treated to firework displays of political desperation. With threats, intimidation, innuendos etc becoming part of the daily sermons, the barometric readings of the political atmospheric pressure continues to oscillate rapidly, between extremes of “return to power” and “to stay in power” with ominous foreboding.

In this race of political musical chairs, there’s an unofficial notion that both parties have a God given right to rule every 10 years. I said unofficial, remember? The APC is desperate to take the baton for the next lap, for fear that it might go into oblivion if it stays in opposition for another 5 years. The SLPP, possibly fearful of revenge politics might be desperate to keep and reluctant to pass the baton, as if to compensate for all those years in comatose opposition.

The Bo school marked its 120th anniversary last week. The pump and pageantry of the occasion, though fitting was greeted with some green eyes from its critics. Sadly, the occasion that was supposed to be remembered as a celebration of “academic excellence” was not only usurped by politics, and will be remembered as a pseudo SLPP convention. Can the DNA of Bo School and SLPP be extricated, while some describe it as the Southern Ekutay? According to social media, certain statements, alleged to have been made by some individuals are now trending as unfortunately legendary:

Government Deputy Info Minister, “kakascatter: “I want all APC to die”.

SLPP Chairman, Jimmy Battilo: No more APC! No More APC! No More APC in this country!!!
H.E President Bio as SLPP leader: “All APC supporters in Bonthe shall die early in the morning”. (Courtesy of S.O Blyden).

While some see Zainab Sherriff and Lansana Bangura as recipients of selective justice, it is tempting to dismiss these utterances as passion. In describing Interestingly, it is becoming difficult to see Zainab Sherriff’s and Dumbuya’s speeches as their passionate but stubborn adherence to real differences of opinion regarding rights, but describe what came out during the OBBA celebration as suspicious and more dangerous than the incitement of self-interest. Casually describing these concerns as expressions of opinions could be costly, if we don’t collectively nip them in the bud and across board. Let’s not forget that “the only difference between the expression of an opinion and an incitement is the speaker’s enthusiasm for the result” (O.W.Holmes, Jr).

Our public officials, “celebrities” and politicians should not underestimate the potential implications of what they say, especially in public. Lips sink ships and eloquence can set fire to reason.

As a nation, we should be brave to condemn political recklessness, irrespective of our party affiliations. When the Secretary General of the opposition APC Lansana Dumbuya was refused bail in February, 2026, Presidential aspirant Ali Kabba received blanket condemnation from his SLPP party for saying that “Bail is a constitutional safeguard”. The languages used by our politicians might be different in syntax, semantics, and contexts etc. Sadly, no one can determine the implications and potentially unintended outcomes of them. This is not about whether you support the APC or SLPP. This is about standards and the concept of facilitating a level playing field.

Should our politicians take more responsibility for exercising their freedom of speech?
Many would recall that one of President Bio’s lasting legacies would be the amendment of the Public Order Act, 1965(POA).After successive promises and failures to amend a law that criminalised free speech, it is interesting to note that it took an SLPP- led President to amend the very law that was initiated by the Margai SLPP government in the first place. Kudos to President Bio for tweaking the law. However, if recent events surrounding the concept of freedom of speech are anything to go by, is there a risk of President Bio’s legacy imploding? Are we unconsciously sleepwalking our way into the same old judicial quagmire that is increasingly locked into the labyrinth of social media and technological cyber gymnastics?
The last word:

Our politicians should remember that the security, peace, safety and wellbeing of Sierra Leone and its citizens lie squarely on the shoulders of our elected officials and politicians. We have a nation that is already inclined toward aggression. Political rhetoric can incite violence if you expose people to hostile political speech. No one needs a reminder of our decade long brutal war.

The nation, posterity and history will never forgive anyone that would incite, ferment and unleash chaos, brute fest or war in their quest for power. Sierra Leoneans do not deserve to be used as cannon fodder for personal aggrandisement. As citizens, we have a collective duty not to allow some people’s fear of revenge politics or their party’s sinking into oblivion as the ultimate price with our lives. We saw what happened in America on January 6th, 2021. We don’t want another January 6th, 1999 in Sierra Leone. No thank you. No political party is worth anyone’s life.
As for President Bio’s advice on caring and sharing, you have my vote. Let’s care, share and Make Salone Sweet Again (MASSA). Next time you vote, vote for the person who promises the least. They will be the least disappointing.

Don’t forget to turn the lights off when you leave the room.
Abdulai Mansaray

Yes, Political Rhetoric