Following recent disturbances involving the police and APC supporters, the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party has been accused of narrowing the space for the opposition. Umaru Fofana caught up with the SLPP National Secretary General, Umaru Napoleon Koroma to discuss whether the police are backing them while restricting the opposition.
Politico: Mr. Koroma your party stands accused by the main opposition APC party who say that the field is not level in terms of policing political events. Guilty or not guilty?
Umaru Napoleon Koroma: That’s not correct, Umaru. I know you have followed elections in Sierra Leone for a very long time. Most times during elections period people think that is the time to display all kinds of lawlessness in the country. But that’s not the time for lawlessness. Law and order do not stop to operate as a result of elections. But normally when we have elections in this country, people try to behave as if they are out of the confines of the laws. That’s not correct. So yesterday’s [Sunday 2 April] event was actually unfortunate. I was not in Freetown, I was way in Falaba [district] but I saw it on social media. What I saw initially was what actually got me concerned and angered. The reason being, I saw young people getting down from their vehicles to accost police officers. If you have been stopped by the police it’s for you to stop quietly, talk to the police officers and engage them in a very civil manner. But the manner in which we saw those young people, attempting to go at the police officers was very, very much unfortunate. And don’t forget, we just had the August 10 incident in which people got to the streets. And at the end of the day, we lost six police officers. So if you are coming in that manner at the police officers, they have to maintain law and order. But that being said, it is also very much unfortunate, Umaru, in this country that the current opposition leader in the person of Dr. Samura Kamara had said – and he is on record – when he lost the elections in 2018 that they would cause all sorts of trouble for this present government. So the strategy has basically been to create this kind of situation, create some kind of fear in the minds of the ordinary Sierra Leoneans. And by so doing he thinks he will win some sympathy from the international community and those onlookers. So most of these things that they are causing are actually being orchestrated by them. And the police definitely will have to keep law and order. So we don’t have anything to do with that as a political party.
Politico: So are you sure that President Julius Maada Bio – who is both President and your presidential candidate – when he goes on his political activities he always seeks approval from the police?
Umaru Napoleon Koroma: Well, definitely! What President Bio is doing at the moment, we have not come to real politicking yet, what President Bio is doing at the moment is to visit his projects, and visit to the countryside. But when we come to political activities [like we did] recently [when] we had our convention in Kambia. Before we went to that convention, I wrote to the police. I asked for their permission. I have a copy of the letter I wrote to them and I have the reply they sent to us. I explained to them that we had our convention and we needed police security. And we did not move in thousands of vehicles going to Kambia. People went there quietly. We had our convention and we came back. And at that particular police checkpoint in Mile 38, I have been stopped there several times. Even today when I was coming from Falaba my vehicle was stopped there. My security in front of the vehicle alighted from the vehicle and spoke to his colleague officers and I was allowed passage. But I have never, never, for once tried to speed off when I am asked to stop. So if you are stopped by a police officer it is your responsibility to get down and talk to the police officer. But it’s on video, now they are trying to turn the story around. I am hearing the APC putting a statement out about assassination attempts. That’s very much unfortunate. That’s very much unfortunate! It cannot be that and we have to remember that we as civilians or we as politicians, we also have to aid the police officers to do their job properly.
Politico: But would you say, hand on heart, that the field is level in terms of when your, party goes out on its activities as a ruling party and when the opposition party does?
Umaru Napoleon Koroma: Well, normally we follow the laid down procedures. It’s, one, to ask for police clearance and wait for the police to reply to our request. And when that is done, then we go about our activities. We expect the same from the APC that if they are going on any activity, they have to ask the police to provide for them security. And if the police respond to them…because what we read from the press release, it’s clear. I heard the police saying that they had an arrangement with Dr. Samura Kamara and he was only entering Freetown with ten vehicles. So by the time they got to Mile 38, you see the fleet of cars that were coming together. So that was basically in contravention of what they had agreed. I was not there when they made the arrangement but that is what the police are saying in their press statement.
It tells you that probably somebody else was trying to do something outside of the confines of the law and did not want to abide by what they had discussed. And at the end of the day the police too…and even when they were stopped, the manner in which they reacted. So to me, the SLPP has nothing to do with that and I will encourage the police officers that they are there for every Sierra Leonean – be it SLPP, APC, NGC, RUFP, whatever political party you belong to. They are there to protect life and property. When we sleep at night they are out there protecting us. If we have any issues in our homes, we do call the police officers. If we are attacked we do call the police officers. We need them. So all we can do is ensure that we create an enabling environment for them to dispense their duties without any fear or favour.
Politico: My understanding is that this was not a political activity. This was Samura Kamara driving from the airport back to Freetown after an overseas trip. Did he need to be restricted in terms of how he can return to Freetown?
Umaru Napoleon Koroma: Well they had planned [it]. It was on social media. Dr. Samura had come, I think earlier, I saw it on social media when the APC had posted that Dr. Samura Kamara had returned from America and that they should converge to receive Samura Kamara.
Politico: But which is not unusual…
Umaru Napoleon Koroma: I understand that. So if they are converging as Sierra Leoneans, they are coming in large numbers, they need protection. So the police would have to step in to guide them. Don’t forget the last time after the convention that ended in Makeni, they were also processing to Freetown. You would say he was just returning to his house but we saw what happened when he tried to use a different route and at the end of the day, there were some skirmishes all over the place. Maybe they requested the police to say “I’m coming to Freetown” and as the opposition leader, he is entitled to security. If he asked the police and the police said to him “come we will provide you security” and “how many vehicles are you coming with?” You tell them, and the police are prepared for that. But at the end of the day you see something completely different from that and they stopped to enquire from them and that led to something different. That led to the supporters…getting down from their vehicles to accost the police officers. That was not correct.
Politico: Finally, what are you doing as the ruling party in terms of controlling your supporters as well, as we approach elections?
Umaru Napoleon Koroma: I keep talking to them. I have been having several engagements on the radio and television talking to them to keep calm. And the last time I was on the radio I told them that this particular election is about ideas. We are going to engage our people and talk to them. Nobody is going to win this election by instilling fear in the minds of ordinary Sierra Leoneans or by thinking that you are going to be the best in perpetrating violence. That said, I also went around last month and engaged all our party executives from the chiefdom level, district level and chiefdom levels. And I entreated them to maintain peace and calm. And I even reminded them that we are in governance and we bear the greatest responsibility. We should be the ones maintaining peace. But peace is a two-way traffic as well. So I have been calling on the APC for us to be having those joint statements, talking to our supporters. But you can see the desperation on the other side of things…Election is just one day, you go there you vote by 5 pm you’re done, votes are counted and the winner is announced. This is not the end of the world. We are only having one Sierra Leone; we need to maintain the peace. That day will come and pass but Sierra Leone will remain. The people of this country will remain...As political parties that is our responsibility. Constitutionally, we are responsible to shape the political opinions of the people of this country; it’s not for us to be creating chaos for them. So as a political party, I will continue to talk to SLPP members to be law-abiding, to continue to remain peaceful and not to engage in any form of violence. If any SLPP member is involved, we will not be afraid; we will not be shy to call that person out. If it is a group of persons, we will name them…we will disown them. If they are SLPP, we will discipline them to ensure that what they are trying to do or what they have done is not right. We will not engage in any form of violence and we will continue to say that to the country.
Politico: Thank you sir.
Umaru Napoleon Koroma: You are welcome.
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