Sierra Leone News: APC Loses 10 Parliamentary Seats
By Stephen V. Lansana
Two High Court judges in Sierra Leone, Justice M.A.S. Stevens and Justice K. Kamanda have on Friday May 31, 2019, have disqualified 10 parliamentary seats of the main opposition All Peoples Congress (APC) party.
The ruling came following the petition of 16 APC parliamentarians by ruling Sierra Leone People Party (SLPP) on allegations of election malpractices, and receiving salaries from the consolidated revenue fund less than a year to the March 2018 elections.
The SLPP won nine out of the 16 petition cases, and APC won five, whilst one vacant seat will be re-run in three months time.
Meanwhile, the APC also filed 33 petitions against the SLPP parliamentarians, but they have still not been listed for hearing.
According to the ruling, the APC party parliamentarians who lose their seats are required to refund within three months a year salary which they have been receiving as parliamentarians.
The house of parliament has already sworn-in the nine SLPP members that won the petition cases.
The 16 APC MPs that were petitioned include: Issac Tucker — Constituency 022, John Conteh — 031, Billoh Shaw — 039, Kussan Sesay — 045, Amadu Kanu — 098, Kemokoh Conteh — 108, Mrs. Kadie Kallon — 110, Rugiatu Kanu — 113, Isaac Tarawallie — 118, Wurie Jalloh — 119, Momoh Kamara — 120, Ahmed Mansaray — 121, Hon. Chernoh Maju Ramadan Bah — 126, Sirajin Rollins-Kamara — 127, Abu Bakarr Sillah — 129, Osman Timbo — 130.
MPs who lost the petition include: Hon. Osman A. Timbo, Hon. Ahmed Mansaray, Hon. Mohamed S. Karim-Carew, Hon. Abu Bakarr F. Sillah, Hon. Sirajin M.R Kamara, Hon. Khadijatu Davies, Hon. John Sattie, Hon. Hariyatu A. Bangura, Hon. Kemokoh Conteh, and Hon. Momoh Kamara.
The following MPs have subscribed to the Oath of office as detailed in the Third Schedule of the 1991 Constitution: Hon. Rev. Horace E. Vincent, Hon. Allieu Ibrahim Kamara, Hon. Ahmed Joseph Kanu, Hon. Tennyson Hindolo Sandy, Hon. Adul Sulaiman Marray-Conteh, Hon. John Telson Koroma, Hon. Benjamin Turay, Hon. Emmanuel S. Gbekie and Hon. Abdul M. Lansana.
With ruling and as things stand, the SLPP have 58 seats, the APC 57 and two bye-elections to be held, NGC party has four seats, and C4C have 8. There are also 13 Paramount Chief Members of Parliament (PCMP), and 3 independent MPs.
This is not the first time members of parliament are losing their seats after high court ruling. It could be recalled that after the 2012 parliamentary election, the seat of Ansu Lansana Esq. of the then main opposition SLPP was petitioned by the ruling APC party. Lawyer Lansana lost his seat to the petitioner, former Honorable Macarthy who was the second best candidate with no re-run election conducted at that time.
The National Secretary General of APC, Ambassador Alhaji Dr. Osman Foday Yansaneh said that the petition cases have continued more than four months as stipulated by the electoral laws of the country.
“We call on all APC members to obey the law, be peaceful and respect the judgments of the court until further directives are given by the national secretariat,” Ambassador Yansaneh said.