By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay
The Chairperson of the All Political Parties Association (APPA), Augusta James Teima, has called on the association to unite amidst division in their ranks. The call comes following the rescindment of an injunction on the association from undertaking any of its functions under the name “APPA”.
Teima made the call during a press conference on Thursday at the Political Parties Registration Commission headquarters.
APPA is an association representing the 17 registered political parties in the country. It was established as a tool to foster peace among political parties. However, divisions within the association have seen five of those members brake away and form their own rival association. This was provoked by a controversy over the legitimacy of the Teima-led executive which has been acting since 2015.
The other faction headed by Dr Jonathan Sandy accused the Teima administration of acting without legal mandate. As per its constitution, APPA is supposed to hold new elections every two years.
The injunction was slammed by a High Court on the 23 March this year, the very day the Teima faction, which is recognized by the PPRC, was holding its delegate conference. Officials say it would have been the first ever delegate conference of the association since it was founded.
In a statement by the association released last week, it called on its members to bury their differences and work towards a common ground.
“We want to call on all registered political parties in Sierra Leone including the plaintiff, to join hands with us in building on existing achievements of the All Political Parties Association and to continue to waive the dwindling confidence existing between the government and the opposition parties and to maintain national cohesion for the development of Sierra Leone,” the statement signed by nine political parties, including SLPP and APC, read.
The Sandy faction has not responded to the calls yet. It is not clear whether they will get on board with the Teima led executive. However, Teima mentioned at the press conference that they had started reaching out to some of them.
The injunction had serious effects on the work of APPA, according –to Teima who said the association missed out on a lot of opportunity to strengthen it. She cited the their failure to partake in the national peace conference, otherwise called Bintumani III, which was organized in May.
“APPA has been playing a key role in national development. In Bintumani III we were missing in action and political parties are crucial to the development of this country. We missed out on the massive sensitization that we could have done,” she said.
The governing Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and the main opposition All People’s Congress (APC) are part of the Teima faction.
Karamoh Kabbah, Deputy Organising Secretary of the APC, praised the association for the restraint it had shown during the injunction.
“Thanks to APPA for exercising restraint. This demonstrates that political parties are more ready for democracy now,” Kabba said.
A representative from the SLPP, David Austin Lemoh, assured APPA of government’s commitment to supporting the leadership. Lemoh also urged the association to endeavor to represent everyone’s interest.
“APPA belongs to all of us here. So we have to ensure that it fights for everyone and not only APPA members,” Lemoh said.
With the injunction rescinded, the association says it hopes to hold its delegate conference soon to be followed by elections in the coming months. Until then officials say the association intends to continue its usual engagement with the government.
“APPA is not an opposition platform. We are here to complement the effort of the government. So, we will continue our engagement with the government on issues that affects us,” Teima said.
The PPRC was not present at the meeting, despite providing the space for the press briefing. But the APPA leadership said they have the support of PPRC to continue their work.
© 2019 Politico Online
