Sierra Leone: Democracy without opposition

Dear Editor,

Below is my comment on the article written by Sankara Kamara.

The problem with SLPP is that after losing the 2007 election to the APC the party reverted to live in the days of Siaka Stevens. Learning from our history that after Siaka Stevens took the reins of power in the late 60s, the APC fought to dismantle the opposition through an unprecedented violence. In less than a decade of Siaka Stevens and the APC rule, the opposition was completely dismantled and for the following two decades, the political system became a One Party affair. Has Sierra Leone fully recovered from this experiment? In his political slogan for the 2007 election, candidate Koroma preached that the next round of APC rule will be different but only for the country to be fooled. Every policy of the 2000s APC is not only a replica of the 70s, 80s and 90 APC but the new brand of APC leadership has decided to increase exponentially the repressive and corrupt practices of the old.

And so, as the APC has decided to repeat history, the SLPP has followed; fearing the imprisonment and loss of life from false treason trials, the SLPP have become invincible, hoping and praying for another savior to take the APC out. To the average opposition SLPP member in the country, no political pressure will take the APC out of power while on the otherhand, the APC is doing everything in her power to ensure that the savior is not born this time.

I will therefore agree with you in part that SLPP share the blame for the disfunctioning of the democratic system but I don’t believe that the APC will accept the role of a vibrant opposition to make democracy work for the good of the country. The APC leadership will not live with a check their misrule of the country. In our most recent history, Kabba called on the APC in opposition and challenged them to be a functional opposition by putting their house in order when the party was gradually disintegrating from internal squabbles. Will the APC challenged the SLPP to do likewise? Did the country experience any attack on APC offices during the SLPP rule? What justification can anyone give for the attacks on SLPP facilities which have become the order of the day since the APC rule took back power?

Yes, the SLPP has a fault but there is no doubt that the APC has control over the making of a dormant and toothless opposition. A vigorous opposition will only meet with more repressive APC who will careless for the loss of Sierra Leonean life in their determination to hold on to power. Truly, history is been repeated.

John Yanguba, MSCE, PE.