SHAMEFUL SCENES IN KENEMA : Sierra Leone Bar Association election descends into chaos as SLPP’s Tuma Gento Kamara declared winner

By Kabs Kanu

There were Shameful scenes in Kenema today. Can you believe it ? Lawyers went berserk as the Sierra Leone Bar Association election descended into utter chaos.

The anger started when the Anti- Corruption Commissioner Francis Ben Kelfala was imposed as the returning officer for the contentious election.

The election ended with the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party ( SLPP ) choice, Mrs. Tuma Gento Kamara , winning and many dissatisfied lawyers crying foul and accusing Ben Keifala of rigging the election . See below video of chaos in the hall as angry lawyers scream : “Shame on you, Ben Kelfalla !!!”

See also video that emerged of Ben Kelfala dancing with the First Lady Mrs. Fatima Bio. Given the nature of social media, it is not known if the dancing video is recent and whether the dancing took place after the elections or it is an old video the usual social media confusionists started sharing after the chaos.

However, whatever the case, it was conflict of interests to have the manifestly pro- SLPP and irredeemably tainted Anti- Corruption Commissioner Ben Keifala , conduct the elections. A neutral person should have been selected. The lawyers were right to have protested because Ben Keifala was not a credible choice for such an assignment where the degree of impartiality was expected to be perfect . Merely having a discredited and despised government functionary like Francis Ben Keifala voided the authenticity of the whole process. In one of the videos below, lawyers could be seen protesting that they were not going to vote.

The margin of victory for Tuma Gento Kamara was very large as seen below and it raises many questions about why lawyers went berserk and are claiming that the election was rigged. One lawyer was even heard contending that only Keifala knows where he got that result because it does not reflect how the votes were cast.

SLPP supporters are contending that the election was free and fair and that the margin of victory was too big for it to have been rigged.

Many lawyers said that hordes of colleagues did not have an opportunity to vote. SIERRA VIEWS , an online media , reported that 70% of intended voters were hindered from casting their ballots

Videos below seem to confirm their complaints. A strange green truck is seen blocking the entrance to Kenema and vehicles conveying lawyers stranded and unable to enter the city. See also below lawyers being impeded by security officers from entering the gate to vote.