By Mohamed Foday Conteh
Lawyers representing the All Peoples Congress (APC) party have asked for an extension of time by the court to conduct their convention. The APC are in court after one of their members from the United States sued them for lack of democratic principles. Alfred Peter Conteh had vowed to instill reforms in the party because he is of the notion that their conduct was outdated and undemocratic.
Ady Macauley and others canvassed the judge on Wednesday 4th August 2021 that the time be extended to the end of the month as proposed in one of the exhibits in their affidavits of support at the High Court in Freetown.
This request came after APC failed to comply with the initial court order given by Justice Adrian Fisher on the 19th April 2021 for the party to conduct their convention within 56 days.
In the previous sitting on Monday August 2, the judge had ordered both counsels of the litigants to serve the court and each other affidavits within a 48 hour span. Both counsels had complied with the court’s order and the two provided opposing affidavits.
Jesse Jengo, lawyer for the plaintiff submitted in court for a cross-examination of Osman Foday Yansaneh Secretary-General of the APC, citing that he had issues with paragraph 13 of the affidavit in support. This ensued after the said paragraph opined that there was a court ruling on the matter sometime in June 2020, which Jengo said cannot be factual because the said matter started this year and not in 2020. He submitted that it was for Yansaneh to have been called to the dock to answer questions bordering on that.
Justice Fisher granted the request made by Jengo on the basis that his cross-examination should be hinged on the periphery of the said paragraph 13.
Yansaneh, during cross-examination, told the court that the reason that they failed to accede to the court’s order was because the party lacks certain logistical support needed for the actualisation of the convention. He stated that the convention had to consider 132 chairpersons, 660 delegates among other things to before the said convention. He added that they have held consultations with the Political Party Registration Commission (PPRC) and other aggrieved parties on mapping out strategies to move on. He added that it was based on that they are seeking the court’s leave for an extension to the end of August 2021.
Jengo, in contrast, proposed to the court that the APC and in particular Yansaneh failed to accede to the court’s order because he had wanted to retain his position as Secretary General of the APC. Yansaneh, however, did not acquiesce to that notion by sticking to his earlier submission.
Macauley, arguing for Yansaneh, criticised the approach used by Jengo in his quest for cross-examination. He stated that the lawyer for Conteh had addressed all necessary issues in affidavit in opposition and in simple terms, his request for cross-examination was nothing short of ‘mala fides’-an intent to which is to deceive the court or was acting in bad faith. He said that the issue in paragraph 13 that he had wanted to cross-examine on were not of severity to the proceeding.
Justice Fisher allayed the fears of Conteh with regards the composition of members that will be participating in the said convention, by stating that it will be decided by the court. The judge then adjourned the matter, for ruling on Monday 9th August 2021.
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