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The Sierra Leone Bar Association’s (SLBA) highly anticipated Annual General Meeting (AGM) was suspended after unexpected disruptions delayed the commencement of proceedings and triggered concerns among legal practitioners.
The AGM, which was expected to usher in a new leadership for the association, failed to get underway as planned following reports of access restrictions at the venue and allegations of interference in the electoral process.
Speaking in a video that has since circulated widely on social media, the Association’s Public Relations Officer, Alfred Kamanda Esq., claimed that he and several members of the outgoing executive were prevented from entering the meeting hall before the scheduled start of the event.
Kamanda described the development as an unprecedented setback for the Bar Association, alleging that external forces had become involved in what should have been an independent electoral process. He further claimed that there were attempts to influence the outcome of the election in favour of one of the presidential candidates, Martina Baindu Egbenda.
The situation escalated after Assistant Inspector General (AIG) Sylvester Koroma, the Regional Commander for Freetown West, reportedly directed that the meeting be suspended, bringing all planned proceedings to a halt.
The decision has generated strong reactions within the legal community, with many lawyers expressing concern over the interruption of the AGM and calling for the Bar Association’s electoral process to remain free from any form of undue influence.
