Looking at the current political stalemate ongoing in the country, there seem to be claims and counter claims of the illegitimacy of the government and this is coming from the main opposition APC and the governing SLPP leadership.

The APC, the main opposition party says it doesn’t recognize the government’s legitimacy despite subregional, regional and some foreign governments have congratulated President Julius Maada Bio declared last month as the winner of the June 24 polls although countries of the Western bloc nations of the EU, England, Germany, and the United States, etc hold their breath on diplomatic protocols and are hesitant to say so openly.

The APC candidate Dr. Samura Mathew Wilson Kamara who is standing trial in court before the elections claimed that the government did not win the elections and this view now seemed agreeable also by local and international observers that monitored the polls and who have made strong recommendations to their foreign governments and missions abroad on the state of democracy in Sierra Leone. Their reports mostly point to errors made by the ECSL which has been accused of wrongdoing to declare the SLPP candidate Dr. Julius Maada Bio as winner amidst the disputed results.

What will this mean for the APC party and its supporters and Dr. Samura Kamara in the ongoing Chancery matter?

The APC had already said that they are not going to court to contest the election results on allegations that they do not trust the court’s present setup due to past experiences with their matters in the last five years. This would also mean that they are not participating in anything under this government and it seems that they mean it for real.

First, they have boycotted the first day (opening of parliament) for the swearing in of MPs in the House despite one of their members (Hon. Mohamed Bangura, MP Karena District) defying this order or stance and instead showed up in parliament on Thursday and took the oath of office as MP.

Now with the pending matter in court that has the biggest implications on the ongoing political statement ever before, this will be another test case of the APC’s resolve not to cooperate or do

If Samura Kamara and the APC party stand by their words and actions then this would mean that they will not attend today’s sitting or hearing of the matter because it doesn’t recognize the government that has appointed the judge (s) on the matter. Kamara would be shooting himself in the leg if he fails to attend and that will further increase the problem

That is, Dr. Samura Kamara may likely boycott the court’s hearing as part of his continued protest of not recognizing the legitimacy of the government.

Although the courts (Judiciary) are separate from the government (Executive) as the powers are supposed to be we are yet to see that separation visible in Sierra Leone as the latter always appoints the former as per the 1991 constitution (Amended). What would this further mean is that peace and security would be further affected because the courts as supreme as they are will strike back at Samura and the APC if they defy the law. Whether bench warrants of arrests would be issued by the APC leader or not remains undecided but there would be action from the court in response.

The pending implications won’t be good for the ordinary man who lives on less than half a dollar for his living in the streets and homes.

It is not known what happens next but this will also have serious consequences on the social, economic, and political situation of the country.

On the other side if Kamara accepts to go to court it would mean that he recognizes the legitimacy of the government contrary to his earlier stance and the party and that would again mean that he has betrayed the public trust of the majority of the APC people that voted the party and are strongly behind him not to cooperate with the government despite a minority section of them believe the contrary and want him to cooperate with the courts.

What would this mean for the party? If Samura goes to court, the APC would be disintegrated into major fragmentations and will face its lowest morale ever as the backlashes from pro-government supporters would heighten tensions on social media and the likes.

If he doesn’t cooperate, the government’s morale would be too weakened, and democracy, peace, and security affected.

The way forward
Government’s business never stops as the saying goes but at certain times, there is always the need for common sense to prevail over intelligence. That is, a speedy engagement of both sides (opposition & government) should be compromised on the ongoing political situation in the country before it leads us to other levels of crises.

These views expressed are purely mine and do not represent any organization, political party, or group of people but are sourced out of genuine concerns of the public interest