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The leadership and members of the APC have received with great surprise the announcement from President Bio that his government will go ahead with the unconstitutional, ill motivated, unprecedented, uneconomic and poorly planned Mid Term Census slated to commence on 10th December 2021 much against the wishes of the majority of Sierra Leoneans, registered political parties and a cross section of the international community.
Whilst we do acknowledge the fact that the Bio led SLPP Government since it took office has demonstrated disrespect for basic provisions of our 1991 National Constitution and other laws and has consistently defied wise counsel with unprecedented arrogance, we the leadership and members of the APC have this time decided to challenge this reckless impunity and are calling on our members countrywide not to participate in the proposed Mid Term Census.
Members of the public would recall that the APC has exhausted all possible reasonable avenues at our disposal to draw the attention of the President Bio led SLPP government and its cohorts to the fact that this proposed Mid Term Census has not followed due process as provided for in our 1991 Constitution; has not respected due process as required by international best practices in the conduct of Censuses and even the Statutes of Statistics Sierra Leone and is a wastage of valuable national resources.
The entire process is poorly planned; unprofessionally executed and shrouded in secrecy. The Statutory Instrument was not properly laid in Parliament and the entire process breached relevant procedures enshrined in our 1991 Constitution.
The mandatory Technical and Advisory Committees that were to be set up and made functional to superintendent the process and ensure that all key stakeholders were a part of the process were not properly constituted and were never a part of the process. It is appalling to note that even the report of the Pilot Census is yet to be made public and popularized.
A cursory look at the breakdown of Enumeration Areas by district already presents a worrisome picture about their attempt to distort the demographic landscape of the country in their dastardly attempt to skew the statistics in favour of the South and Eastern regions of the country. Furthermore, the citizenry is yet to be fully sensitized about this ill motivated Mid Term Census. It is therefore clearly an exercise in futility.
We wish to also state categorically that from all indications, this proposed Mid Term Census serves no useful purpose order than to fuel the unfortunate desire of the President Bio led SLPP government to unconstitutionally create more districts and constituencies; distract the populace and international community from the burning issues plaguing our beloved nation; undermine the timing and credibility of the scheduled 2022 and 2023 elections; and further risk plunging this country into insecurity and anarchy.
Since we have exhausted all possible remedies aimed at prevailing on the President Bio led SLPP government to cancel the proposed Mid Term Census; and since this government has failed to even heed the wise counsel of the European Union and other Development Partners; we have therefore resolved as follows:
1. That all members of the APC both at home and in the diaspora must not participate in the Mid Term Census and must not make themselves available to be counted.
2. That all members and supporters of the APC countrywide must withdraw their services and decline to serve in any capacity in the conduct of the said Mid Term Census.
3. That the APC calls on the Consortium of Progressive Political Parties (COPPP) and well-meaning Civil Society groups nationwide and in the diaspora to join this clarion call and help save our beloved nation from the claws of tyranny and dictatorship.
4 . That we are critically reviewing the situation and all reasonable and legitimate measures at our disposal and shall revert to our membership in due course.
The APC continues to uphold the rule of law but shall resist every unlawful attempt to undermine the peace, security and democracy that we have all fought so hard over the years to nurture and sustain.
