As fears abounded all week about her safety after she became the first to expose the Sierra Leone Elections Commission for rigging the presidential elections in favor of President Maada Bio , the Chairlady of the National Elections Watch ( NEW ), Mrs. Marcella Samba, has seemingly fled the country. There were reports that she had even been declared wanted by vindictive supporters of President Bio and the SLPP.
The drama of Marcella Samba’s apparent escape from Sierra Leone started unfolding on Friday when photos emerged on social media, showing her being impeded at the Lungi International Airport. It was then reported that the international community had intervened in the airport standoff and asked the government officials to let her leave.
Later , Marcella Samba tweeted with a photo of herself in the passenger cabin of a plane and the inscription : SEE YOU SIERRA LEONE. I LOVE YOU DEARLY . MY COUNTRY, MY HOME.
This latest development, if true, will sadden Sierra Leoneans because Marcella Samba has been a real colossus and a champion, fearlessly fighting for democracy in her motherland. But it will also provide more evidence to the international community that President Maada Bio is not good for Sierra Leone.
Even the U.S. Congress and the U.S. Ambassador in Sierra Leone, His Excellency Daavid Rimmer, had expressed grave concerns about death threats to elections observers.
