By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay
Today at Aberdeen, the country will gather in one room to discuss peace and national cohesion. In New England Ville, all three judges will assemble to continue their work at the Commission of Inquiry to ensure accountability.
This is not a contrast; it is the new reality in Sierra Leone. Many people will be tempted to ask which of the two presupposes the other; accountability or the peace and cohesion drive?
But let’s go over to Aberdeen where men and women from all works of life in this country will converge at the Bintumani Conference Center to have one big discussion on unity. The premise behind this conference is that Sierra Leone is divided and this is affecting peace and national cohesion in the country.
But is this premise correct? Is the situation really that bad? These are just the few questions surrounding this conference. There are many more questions where these came from.
Peace and Conflict expert, Dr Alex Sivalie Mbayo believes the time has never been more perfect for such a conference.
“Obviously there is a divide. The rants on social media, the court cases, the boycott in parliament and the violence all shows this. Our country is in the state of fragility,” Dr. Mbayo said.
His statement has been re-echoed by many across societal spectrum; government, opposition and even the electorates. That is why we are here now.
The planning of this conference has perhaps been haphazard. There have been mooted complaints about the lack of proper inclusivity.
The Institute for Governance Reform (IGR) was one of the few bodies that suggested that the Bintumani conference be postponed.
“IGR notes that the conference is being planned amidst fears from many groups that the process is being rushed and has not provided sufficient room for inclusive dialogue on a number of issues,” it said in a statement.
Another civil society group, Campaign for Good Governance (CGG), shared similar views. CGG’s Executive Director, Marcella Samba Sesay, said it would have been better if more thorough consultation were done.
“The process was not participatory enough and democracy is about participation,” she told Politico.
This concern is apt. President Julius Maada Bio announced the plan for Bintumani 3 barely two weeks ago and it seems that the most comprehensive peace dialogue ever is progressing in a haste.
The conference has been carved as the exercise that will kick start the work of the proposed Peace commission. This Peace commission is an idea that some political parties have already questioned.
National Grand Coalition (NGC) is particularly sceptical about the idea. It’s leader, Dr Dennis Bright, told journalists on Wednesday they thought that the government was putting the cart before the horse.
“We are having a conference now to have the peace commission whiles they have already concluded before to have the commission before such conference,” he said at a press conference.
At that press conference held at the party’s head office in Freetown, the NGC leadership officially announced that they would not participate as a party, citing, among other reasons, the failure of the organizers to extend the party and invitation. Dr. Bright said they have an invitation to only attend the opening ceremony and he wasn’t even clear if they attend the opening ceremony.
“We believe that the establishment of the peace commission should be delayed. We should focus on the recommendation of the TRC [Post-war Truth and Reconciliation Commission] and CRC [Constitutional Review Commission]. If we do so, we might not even need a peace commission,” he said.
Like the NGC, the Coalition For Change (C4C) is dealing with a similar quagmire.
Dr Kandeh Yumkella, who is the NGC leader in Parliament and frankly the face of the party, has consented to attend and moderate a session. Dr Yumkella, in many ways than one, is the embodiment of the NGC ideology.
The boycott spree
Former presidential flagbearer of C4C, Samuel Sam-Sumana, was also invited to moderate a session in the conference. However, in a statement signed by the party’s National Secretary General, Koighor Aloysious Foh, it said the former Vice President wouldn’t be available due to international commitment.
And Mr Foh later told Politico that they would not be participating as a party. They, like the NGC, based their decision on lack of enough consultation and inclusivity in the process.
“The consultation did not incorporate us. We were not invited for planning, organizing or any dialogue towards this conference,” Koighor Aloysious Foh, National Secretary General of C4C, told Politico.
Foh even went further to describe the conference as a ploy by the SLPP-led government to score some political goal.
“We don’t think this conference is about national cohesion. This is a calculated ploy by the government to achieve what they want to achieve,” he stated.
But C4C leader in Parliament, Sahr Emerson Lamina, has consented to attend and even moderate a session. How do you separate him from his political party is not clear.
The main opposition All Peoples Congress (APC) has been unequivocal in their position about Bintumani 3. The party is not attend the conference, its National Secretary General, Osman Yanssaneh, told Politico, hours before the party was scheduled to issue out a its position statement on the matter.
The APC top leadership on Tuesday met at the party’s head office to decided on whether its participation in the conference.
From the onset of the Bio presidency, the APC has expressed grievances over its style of governance, accusing the SLPP-led administration of perpetuating inequality and injustice. APC is particularly unhappy with the government’s clampdown on its members in its fight against corruption.
Therefore if APC ends up not attending as a party, there is very little doubt that any of its members will go anywhere near Bintimani Hotel between May 23 and May 25.
And there is a lot of concerns as to what the country can attain from this much talked about event if the opposition, especially the dominant APC, doesn’t partake in it.
But Dr Mbayo believes that political parties will be missing out if they boycott the conference.
“It will not tell well. We all need to go, no matter how hurt we are. This is the one chance we will get to speak out our minds,” he said.
And CGG’s Marcella Samba-Sesay noted that while this conference should be seen as the start, no matter what parties say now, they should still be part of future processes.
“Even though they have decided not to attend, I believe they should still be engaged going forward. Because they are right to say much consultation was not done with them,” she said.
Information Minister and government spokesman, Mohamed Rahman Swaray, expressed disappointment at the decision of the opposition parties not to attend.
He said by pulling out, political parties are also missing out on the chance to speak out.
“This is an opportunity we could have used to make our point as political parties. This is not about political parties; this is about the heart and soul of our country,” Swaray told Politico.
These boycotts point to one thing: that the organisers of Bintumani 3 have achieved the wrong priorities. So much focus have been put into inviting top peace experts from across the world, while the major protagonists the conference is intended for have been left out.
What to expect?
Even though everyone doesn’t seem to be on board with this conference, there is an opportunity here. For a start government can put into motion a solid plan on bridging the seeming divide. Whatever they decide is important, but how they roll out those action points across the country is key.
As Dr Mbayo puts it, this conference should not be an end on its own.
“Peace is a long term process, even after one conflict it might take decades. But the healing process must go on.”
(c) 2019 Politico Online
