Sylvia Blyden Condemns President Bio’s Controversial ‘Death Threat’ to APC Supporters, Accuses Him of Undermining National Unity

Prominent politician and commentator Dr. Sylvia Olayinka Blyden has strongly condemned President Julius Maada Bio over a series of recent public statements, accusing the president of violating his constitutional duty as Sierra Leone’s “Symbol of National Unity.”

In a statement released on Easter Monday, April 6, 2026, Dr. Blyden criticized the president for making what she described as three highly insensitive and divisive “jokes” over the span of three days.

The primary catalyst for her criticism was a remark President Bio made during the launch of a Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) office in Bonthe District. Speaking in the Mende language, the president stated that anyone in the district who supports the opposition All People’s Congress (APC) “shall die early in the morning.”

In addition to the Bonthe remark, Blyden called out two other recent comments made by the president: a joke referencing “cut hands”—a painful reminder of the amputations suffered by citizens during Sierra Leone’s civil war—and a jocular suggestion that wives of Old Bo Boys Association (OBBA) alumni should “share husbands.”

Blyden argued that the president’s rhetoric is fundamentally incompatible with the office he holds. Citing Section 40(2) of the Sierra Leone Constitution, she emphasized that the president serves as the “Fountain of Honour” and the “Symbol of National Unity.”

“Our President is no longer an ordinary citizen who can say anything in public,” Blyden stated. “It means everything the President does in the public space should symbolize National Unity in our Democracy. How does wishing death to APC supporters be a symbol of national unity?”

The State House has pushed back against the literal interpretation of the Bonthe District remark. Myk Berewa, the State House Communications Director, responded directly to Blyden, explaining that the comment was lost in translation.

“President Bio’s remarks during the launch of the Bonthe District SLPP office were quite metaphorical in Mende, implying that anyone born, raised, and who sticks with the APC in Bonthe is somehow cursed,” Berewa stated.

Blyden quickly dismissed this defense, arguing that declaring citizens “cursed” over their political ideology is equally problematic and represents a massive public relations blunder.

Furthermore, Blyden expressed deep concern that the president’s remarks are not isolated incidents but part of a broader, more dangerous pattern of hostility toward the opposition. She pointed to alleged past statements from other ruling party officials—including the Deputy Information Minister and the SLPP Chairman—that expressed a desire for the APC and its supporters to be eradicated.

“They seem to be planning to kill some of us in APC,” Blyden warned.

The State House has not issued any further official comments regarding the ongoing backlash.