New proposed APC constitution faces objections

January 13, 2022 Publisher and Chief Executive Officer KABS KANU Uncategorized 0

The new proposed constitution of the opposition All People’s Congress ( APC ) has met with strong objections from a number of members of the party, including former Minister of Social Welfare , Gender and Children’s Affairs as well as Publisher of the well-read Awareness Times newspaper, Dr. Sylvia O. Blyden .

We publish PART ONE of the objections of Dr. Blyden ,


⛔PART ONE

Awareness Times Newspaper today January 11th 2022, produces Part 1 of our Series on Objections of Dr. Sylvia Olayinka Blyden to the Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma (EBK) 2021 Constitution of the All Peoples Congress (APC).

In this Part One today, we have listed down paragraphs 38 to 62 of her Submissions to the Political Parties Registration Commission (PPRC) under the rubric of: Non-usage of 5th Oct 1991 Democratic Constitution and under the rubric of: Militarized, reduced frequency of Meetings/Mandates. Here follows Paragraphs 38-62 of 88-Paragraphed submission of Dr. Blyden:

NON-USAGE OF 5th OCT 1991 DEMOCRATIC APC CONSTITUTION

  1. Another limb of Objection has to do with the non-utilisation of the 5th October 1991 Constitution of APC to serve as the ideological bedrock on which all foundations for any new democratic Constitution of the APC should have been held.
  2. The 5th October 1991 Constitution of APC was adopted under a free, democratic climate that Sierra Leone was by then enjoying as a budding Democracy. Everything about governance and dispensation of that period emanated freedoms and democratic tenets.
  3. In sharp contrast, the 5th December 1995 Constitution of APC was hammered out when Sierra Leone was under a state of repression, fear and ruled by a military junta that was not only anti-thesis of the APC but emanated militarism and regimental orders during War and civil strife.
  4. Using such a 5th December 1995 Constitution as the bedrock instead of the 5th October 1991 Constitution is a dis-service to everything APC.
  5. I am fully aware, since I was a girl child, of the innately democratic nature of the internal organisation of the APC and I know for a fact that political ideologies of “all men are equal” and “one-man, one-vote” are what inspired APC’s creation in 1960.
  6. I am also aware that since its formation, the internal organisation of APC, in terms of electing executives into various positions within APC, has been mostly desirous to always conform to democratic principles and this was so even during the years when the country was a One-Party State. The country was a One-Party state but to become an executive member inside any level of the then-governing APC party, whether Constituency, District, Region or National, you sought to not only be elected but you had to face party members at regular intervals to renew your mandate as such elected executive. For example, I distinctly recall my late Grandfather, Honourable Professor Solomon A.J. Pratt was an elected Member of Parliament and in addition to seeking the parliamentary mandate from general residents of his constituency, I also know and witnessed several times as he sought another different but specific mandate from those APC residents in his Constituency; by contesting in democratically conducted polls at regular intervals to become elected as Constituency Secretary for Mountain Rural District constituency.
  7. I am aware that on October 1st 1991, under leadership of the then Leader of APC, H.E. President Dr. Joseph Saidu Momoh, APC was to ensure the dissolution of the One Party State and the ushering in of a Multi-Party Democratic System that became the constitutional order and this mandated for the APC to re-write its entire constitution to reflect such changes in Nation.
  8. I am aware that on 5th October 1991, a duly constituted body of elected delegates of the APC, enacted a fully-democratic, APC party constitution that not only retained mandatory election of executives at all levels but fully removed vestiges of certain Committees that had seemingly had powers to over-ride popular choices of party members as to who represented them in Parliament and also made it a must for the presidential candidate to be elected.
  9. I am aware that less than 7 months later on 29th April 1992, there was a military take-over by a group of soldiers calling themselves NPRC. The NPRC military regime banned activities of APC and all several already-registered political parties that were by then competing in democratic space against APC.
  10. I am aware that subsequent to the NPRC takeover, a civil war was to spread over the entire country in a terrible manner.
  11. I am aware that NPRC in mid-1995 lifted their Ban on APC and other political parties’ activities and also pronounced that multi-party elections will be held in February 1996.
  12. I am aware that when the NPRC decided to lift the Ban on political activities, the then extant APC Constitution of 5th October 1991, as aforementioned, was so democratic that it called for election of all APC executives at all constituency, district and regional levels and election of parliamentary and presidential candidates of the party.
  13. I am aware that given the then widespread state of civil strife and the impossibility of access to huge swathes of the country including entire districts and constituencies let alone conduct campaigns for APC executives, a decision was taken by Key Stakeholders and Founding Members like Hon. S.A.T. Koroma on 22nd July 1995 for an “Interim Constitution” to be created that would serve a temporary purpose. The APC’s 1995 Constitution under Article 17, affirms the “Interim” nature of the “Interim Constitution of 22nd July 1995”.
  14. I am also aware that when APC Stakeholders attempted to register with the then Electoral Commission headed by Dr. James Jonah, they met several stumbling blocks including protests from other APC members insisting on the legitimacy of only the 5th October 1991 APC Constitution.
  15. I clearly recall that sometime in last quarter of year 1995, my late Grandfather, Honourable Professor Solomon A.J. Pratt, asked me to meet him at the Law Courts and on my arrival there, he handed me two documents; the first was a handwritten text in his own handwriting that was entitled as PREAMBLE and the second was the 5th October 1991 Constitution of the APC with the signature of President Joseph Saidu Momoh appended on it.
  16. In the presence of some APC stakeholders at the Law Courts, my grandfather Hon. S.A.J. Pratt asked me to go and speedily type on my father’s computer at our residence, the text my grandfather had written that was entitled as PREAMBLE and to print several copies of it. My grandfather also asked me to use my father’s computer scanner at our house to scan and print several copies of the 5th October 1991 APC Constitution with the signature of President J.S. Momoh on it. That I dutifully jumped into my car, drove home and speedily carried out the tasks and brought the printed copies back to my Grandfather at the Law Courts.
  17. I recall from distinct memory whilst computer scanning the APC’s 5th October 1991 Constitution that it was a very democratic document which proudly showcased the truly innately democratic characteristics of the APC and its democratic ideologies.
  18. The handwritten words of my grandfather which he had entitled as PREAMBLE and which I personally typed for him in last quarter of 1995 is exact same text that he handed in my presence to then APC stakeholders like Victor Bockarie Foh at Law Court and it is exact same text that was then appended to the front of the “Interim Constitution of 22nd July 1995” to now create the “5th December 1995” document that is described in the PREAMBLE as the “Revised Interim Constitution” and which text is here reproduced below:

PREMBLE:
WHEREAS by the Political Parties Decree 1995, the National Provisional Ruling Council has lifted the prohibition which was imposed on political activity;
WHEREAS by the said Political Parties Decree 1995, political parties may be established to participate in shaping the political will of the people, to disseminate information on political ideas, social and economic programmes of a national character, and to sponsor candidates for presidential, parliamentary and local government elections;
AND WHEREAS a political party known as the All People’s Congress (APC) party was founded in Sierra Leone on the 11th September, 1960 but ceased to function under the aforesaid prohibition which was imposed on political activity;
AND WHEREAS it is now the intention to revive the erstwhile APC party within the framework of the current national, political, economic, social, educational and foreign policy objectives of Sierra Leone developed from the experience of the current National Provisional Ruling Council administration;
AND WHEREAS it is imperative to promulgate an APC Party Constitution consistent with the country’s present political experience and reflecting the wishes and aspirations of Sierra Leoneans for sustained, multi-party, democratic political system;
AND WHEREAS the delegates of the erstwhile ALL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS Party did on the 5th October, 1991 adopt a revised Constitution;
AND WHEREAS in consonance with the recent experience of the people of Sierra Leone, it is imperative to re-construct an interim APC Party Constitution;

NOW therefore the Founding Members, of the ALL PEOPLES CONGRESS (APC) party, hereby on the 5th day of December, 1995 adopt this present Revised Interim Constitution as amended and ratified.

  1. Clearly, the 1995 APC Constitution document was an “interim” arrangement to deal back then with what was by then “the recent experience of the people of Sierra Leone” in light of what was by then “the country’s present political experience”.
  2. So, after the NPRC junta became defunct and other Civil War challenges finally concluded in January 2002, the APC should have automatically reverted FROM the “Interim” 1995 Constitution BACK TO the very democratic 5th October 1991 Constitution enacted under late President J.S. Momoh as that remains to be the duly enacted APC Constitution.
  3. The current de-facto Chairman/Leader and the de-facto National Secretary-General, after being elected at an APC Convention in March 2002 as Presidential Candidate for 2002 Elections and National Secretary General respectively, were expected to now lead the APC to revert to the usage of the 5th October 1991 democratic APC Constitution as there was no more NPRC junta and no more Civil War.
  4. However, this was not done. The de-facto Chairman/Leader and the de-facto National Secretary-General, instead un-procedurally adopted what they termed as a brand new APC constitution and this illegality caused them both to be dragged to Supreme Court in aforementioned matter entitled back then as SC3/2002 by John Yambasu & Others.
  5. Now that the 9-Man Committee of which I was the Secretary, had recommended for the party to have a democratic Constitution, the party refused to use the legitimate 1991 Constitution as an ideology bedrock and this has now hampered the adopted 2021 Constitution which is littered with dictatorial language that may be acceptable by a Military Junta regime but are completely ultra vires what is expected to be seen in a Democratic Constitution of a Democratic political party like the APC.
  6. Against the above backdrop of what I do know to be the ideology of the All Peoples Congress with respect to its internal organization conforming to democratic principles and with the full knowledge that the Sierra Leone Constitution Act No. 6 of 1991, under Section 35(2) calls for “aims, objectives, purposes and programmes of political parties to NOT contravene or be inconsistent with any provisions” of the said Sierra Leone Constitution as well as for “the internal organization of a political party SHALL conform to democratic principles”, I am therefore objecting to all Articles of the proposed 2021 Constitution which are dictatorial, are abusive of human rights including political rights, are regimental and/or amounts to an undemocratic MILITARIZATION of the All Peoples Congress.

MILITARIZED, REDUCED FREQUENCY OF MEETINGS/ MANDATES:

  1. Of specificity in my objections against military dictatorship in APC, I object to proposed change in frequency of holding various Conventions. Under current 1995 Constitution, Article 6.3.1(iii) dictates Constituency Conventions shall be held “at least once every year” and this makes sense to enhance our democratic credentials as it creates regular dialogue. Article 6.3.2(i) also mandates the Constituency Chairman to call the annual conventions. However, draft 2021 Constitution, under Article 34(d) removes the mandate to call Constituency Conventions from the Constituency Chairman. It says National Secretary General is to now dictatorially call up Constituency Conventions and is to even dictate WHERE and WHEN they shall be held. It also reduces frequency of Constituency Conventions to be held only “ONCE every three(3) years”. I object to Article 34(d) as it is clearly undemocratic. For those exact same reasons, I object to Article 32(d) concerning District Conventions and Article 29(d) concerning Regional Conventions as both Articles are also dictatorial, very much undemocratic and prone to making the APC become militarized.

= TO BE CONTINUED =

Related Posts