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An internal dispute within the UK & Ireland branch of Sierra Leone’s ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) has escalated into a legal battle in London, shockingly implicating Mrs. Yvonne King-Odigboh, Sierra Leone’s Deputy High Commissioner to the UK and Chairperson of the SLPP UK/I Council of Elders.
The case, “Prince Kallon and Harry Caulker vs Yvonne King and Ahmed Tejan-Sie and Alhajie M. Jalloh,” centers on allegations of electoral irregularities and a power struggle within the branch. Plaintiffs Prince Kallon and Harry Moseray Caulker, representing an aggrieved faction, are challenging the conduct of the branch’s elections.
The involvement of Mrs. King-Odigboh, a career diplomat appointed in October 2020, has raised serious concerns within diplomatic and diaspora communities. Typically, diplomats are expected to maintain political neutrality in their host country, a principle enshrined in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
Her entanglement in a partisan feud has sparked scrutiny, as it appears to clash with diplomatic norms. While the dispute is an internal Sierra Leonean matter, its presence in a UK courtroom casts the Deputy High Commissioner in an uncomfortable light, potentially breaching diplomatic protocol.
Though diplomatic immunity may shield Mrs. King-Odigboh from legal consequences, the optics are undeniably poor, raising ethical and professional questions. The UK authorities and diplomatic community may view this as a breach of protocol, as diplomats are expected to remain apolitical in host-country affairs.
The core of the dispute revolves around differing interpretations of the branch’s governing rules: the 2014 by-laws versus the SLPP’s 2020 national constitution. The Council of Elders, chaired by Mrs. King-Odigboh, is at the center of this impasse.
According to the 2014 by-laws, the Council of Elders is responsible for overseeing branch elections. The aggrieved members allege that the current executive refused to relinquish power and allow the Elders to organize timely elections, instead insisting on elections under the 2020 national constitution, which they claim would favor their continued leadership. This power struggle led to legal action in the UK courts.
From the plaintiffs’ perspective, naming the Council of Elders and its Chair was necessary to enforce the branch’s constitution. However, this move has inadvertently created a diplomatic headache.
The dispute risks fracturing unity within the SLPP diaspora and tarnishing the party’s image, reminiscent of a 2016 incident that brought the party into “public disrepute.” The Sierra Leonean government also faces potential embarrassment, with a foreign court deliberating on the conduct of a serving diplomat.
