SLPP Uncovers Many Fake and Unverified Members After Intensive Review of Party Records
The Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) has launched an intensive review of its membership records, with the party saying it has identified a number of individuals whose claimed membership could not be verified in its official database.
The exercise, according to SLPP National Publicity Secretary Moses Sellu Mambu, is part of efforts by the party’s current executive to streamline its membership structure and transition from its largely manual record-keeping system to a digital database.
Speaking on Radio Democracy 98.1 FM, Mambu said a committee has been established to examine the membership status of individuals across the party, including senior political figures and ordinary members.
He said the review involves checking party membership cards, payment records, bank transactions and other documentation to establish whether individuals claiming to be SLPP members have fulfilled the party’s membership requirements.
“We want to bring the party database up to date,” Mambu said, explaining that the committee is reconciling membership records with payment information and other documentation.
According to him, the party’s review has already identified several categories of people whose membership status requires clarification.
Mambu said some individuals claiming to be members have not paid party dues for several years, while others possess membership cards that cannot be matched with the party’s official records.
He also said the party had identified individuals who allegedly remain affiliated with other political parties while presenting themselves as SLPP members.
“There are people within the SLPP, both high profile and junior, who are in actual fact not members of the party as at now,” Mambu said.
He added that the exercise had also uncovered cases in which individuals claimed to possess SLPP membership cards, but the corresponding card numbers could not be found in the party’s records.
Mambu said the verification committee has been examining membership records across different years and comparing them with financial records to determine whether individuals have maintained their membership.
The process, he said, is part of a wider effort to harmonise the party’s membership information before all available records are transferred to a new digital system.
“We are trying to make sure everybody we see in our SLPP actually is SLPP,” Mambu said.
The party’s decision to intensify the review comes as preparations for the 2028 presidential election begin to take shape, with internal questions over membership eligibility already emerging around potential flagbearer aspirants.
One of the most prominent cases involves Musa Tarawally, whose SLPP membership has recently been challenged by the party leadership. The SLPP had last week directed Tarawally to stop presenting himself as an SLPP member or flagbearer aspirant and to stop using the party’s logo over an alleged dual membership with the Citizens Democratic Party (CDP). Tarawally has rejected the claim, maintaining that he resigned from the CDP in 2018 and returned to the SLPP. He has also said he is a fully paid-up SLPP member and national delegate.
Mambu said the Tarawally case should not be viewed as an isolated action against one individual, stressing that the membership review covers the entire party. “The letter to Musa Tarawally is just the beginning. More people will receive similar notices as we update our party membership database,” he said.
He said individuals whose membership status cannot be verified could be contacted by the party and asked to clarify or regularise their status.