Musa Tarawally’s Lawyers Give SLPP Chairman Seven-Day Ultimatum, Threaten Legal Action
Lawyers representing former Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) Member of Parliament Hon. Alhaji Musa Tarawally have issued a seven-day ultimatum to SLPP National Chairman Jimmy Batilo Songa to withdraw a letter declaring that Tarawally is no longer a member of the party.
In a letter dated September 21, 2026, Jengo, Sam & Partners demanded that Songa retract and publicly correct the September 17 communication in which Tarawally was allegedly accused of holding dual membership of the SLPP and the Citizens Democratic Party (CDP).
The lawyers described the decision as unlawful and argued that the SLPP National Chairman does not have the constitutional authority to unilaterally suspend, expel or deregister a party member.
They maintained that Tarawally remains a registered, card-carrying and fully paid-up SLPP member in the category of Grand Chief Patron, with his party dues reportedly paid up to 2028.
The legal team further stated that Tarawally was accredited as a National Delegate at the SLPP’s 14th National Delegates Conference in 2025, where he participated in voting.
At the centre of the dispute is an allegation that Tarawally remains a member of the CDP. His lawyers, however, maintained that he resigned from the CDP on June 15, 2018, through a written resignation addressed to the then CDP Secretary General, Victor O. King, who is now the party’s National Chairman.
The lawyers also cited a September 18, 2026 statement by four CDP Regional Chairmen, which they said rejected claims that Tarawally remains a member of the party.
According to the legal letter, the four regional chairmen stated that they witnessed Tarawally’s return to the SLPP and his public declaration of support for President Julius Maada Bio during the 2018 presidential run-off.
Tarawally’s lawyers further challenged the authenticity and authority of a CDP communication reportedly relied upon by the SLPP Chairman, alleging that it was issued on outdated party letterhead and had not been signed or approved by the current CDP National Chairman.
They argued that the SLPP Chairman’s decision was therefore based on disputed information and was made without following the party’s constitutional disciplinary procedures.
The lawyers stated that no complaint was served on Tarawally, no National Disciplinary Committee was convened, no hearing was conducted and no resolution was passed by the National Executive Council before the September 17 letter was issued.
The legal team has given the SLPP Chairman seven days to withdraw the disputed letter and publish a correction through the same social media platforms where the original communication was circulated.
They are also demanding written confirmation that Tarawally remains a fully paid-up Grand Chief Patron and National Delegate of the SLPP.
The lawyers warned that failure to comply within the stipulated seven-day period could trigger a series of legal and regulatory actions.
These include a possible criminal complaint to the Cyber Crime Unit of the Sierra Leone Police, civil proceedings for alleged libel and injunctive relief, as well as complaints before the Political Parties Regulation Commission (PPRC), the SLPP’s National Executive Council and National Council of Elders.
The legal team also reserved Tarawally’s right to seek redress before regional and international human rights institutions, including the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice.
The lawyers maintained that Tarawally has not been a member of the CDP since June 15, 2018, and continues to be a registered SLPP member with his dues paid up to 2028.
The letter was copied to senior SLPP officials, the PPRC Chairman and other relevant party bodies.