It Was APC’s Effort – Party Chairman Rejects Bar’s Claim Over Secretary General’s Bail

The Acting Chairman of the All People’s Congress (APC), Osman Foday Yansaneh, has stated that it was the party – not the Sierra Leone Bar Association – that secured the release of the party’s National Secretary General, Lansana Dumbuya.

Speaking after Dumbuya’s release, Yansaneh said the APC engaged its own legal team to handle the matter and initiated the process that led to his freedom. He dismissed claims that the Sierra Leone Bar Association was primarily responsible for the outcome.

“The All People’s Congress (APC) Party secure lawyer Lansana Dumbuya, not Mrs Tuma Adama Gento Kamara Bar Association President,” Yansaneh said. “I want the Bar to stop taking credit for what we have done, we the APC are the ones who put out the request not the Bar, they only came in later.” He added: “Yes they did well but it was us that did the work.”

Yansaneh’s comments followed a public statement by the President of the Sierra Leone Bar Association, Tuma Adama Gento Kamara, who said the Association facilitated Dumbuya’s release under her leadership. According to her, the Bar proposed a production order to the court, which she said made it possible for Dumbuya to be granted bail before the court’s adjournment date.

However, Yansaneh maintained that the APC had already taken steps through its legal representatives before the Bar Association became involved. He emphasized that the party formally requested the necessary legal action that led to Dumbuya’s appearance in court and eventual release.

The Acting Chairman acknowledged that the Bar Association “did well” but insisted that the primary effort came from the APC’s legal team, saying. He said the party would not allow others to take sole credit for what he described as its own initiative and hard work.

The differing accounts from the APC leadership and the Sierra Leone Bar Association have drawn public attention to the events surrounding Dumbuya’s release. While both sides agree that legal processes were followed in court, they differ on who initiated and drove the actions that resulted in his bail.

As of press time, the Sierra Leone Bar Association had not issued a further response to Yansaneh’s latest remarks.