By Crispina Cummings
The Majority Leader in Parliament, Sheku Badara Bashiru BB Dumbuya of the All People’s Congress has been overwhelmingly elected Speaker of the House. He polled 100 votes against 15 by his last-minute challenger, Dr Bu-Buakei Jabbie of the opposition Sierra Leone People's Party. Nine MPs were absent.
SBB Dumbuya, as he is fondly called, becomes the first person in Sierra Leone to serve as Majority Leader and Speaker of Parliament, and the first non-lawyer to hold the office since the return of democracy to the country
His predecessor, Justice Abel Stronge whose resignation triggered today's election, is the first Speaker in the country's history to step down from the position. He stepped down after an amendment to the country's constitution which removed as eligibility criterion high court judge status to become House Speaker.
Chernor Maju Bah, MP, returned unopposed as Deputy Speaker.
The Deputy Majority Leader, Ibrahim Bundu becomes the new Leader of the House while Leonard Fofanah, who became an MP in December by default becomes the Deputy House Leader.
Fofanah was declared MP after a high court nullified rather controversially the opposition candidate who had polled the highest number of votes.
Before today's election, several MPs across the party divide had told Politico that Dumbuya would go unopposed after Paramount Chief Member of Parliament BVS Kebbie said he was not interested. The chief told Politico that even though some MPs wanted him to run he could not see himself becoming the third in line to the presidency, as a traditional leader who had his chiefdom to serve.
The new Speaker was nominated by Ibrahim Bundu and rather interestingly was seconded by the Minority Leader Dr Bernadette Lahai. She justified her decision to second Dumbuya's nomination against her fellow party member by saying that they had both entered parliament at the same time and had come a long way, adding that she would do so again and again if the situation presented itself again.
Dr Lahai, who faces a rebellion within her party with the majority of the MPs having called for her replacement, urged all MPs not to antagonise the new House Speaker saying he "should, must and will make a difference" in his new position.
Dr Bu-Buakei Jabbie was nominated by Umar Param Tarawallie, MP, and seconded by Bashiru Sidikie, MP.
During voting, opposition MPs opposed to Dr Lahai's leadership had the desk drummed on them with cat calls also made at them mostly by ruling party members. And when Dr Lahai went to vote, they shouted "Leader! Leader!"
The new Speaker was not sworn in with the justification that under the recent amendment to the country's constitution he should not be, since he was elected from within parliament. However the Deputy Speaker who was also elected from parliament was sworn in by the Clerk of the House.
The new speaker straightaway went into business with his former colleagues paying glowing tribute to him. Mustapha Brima of the opposition SLPP however cautioned against "praise-singers". He asked that he be "kind as he has not been kind, be caring as he has not been caring, and be loving as he has not been loving".
Brima said that often when people had been put into positions they had become "gods and goddesses on earth", and he urged him to not be so. He called for "justice to prevail" in the House.
(C) Politico Online 21/01/14
