Elected councilors of the main opposition party APC in Kono District on June 24th General elections in Sierra Leone have been officially sworn in office. The swearing in ceremony which attracted hundreds of party supporters of the APC, Mayor Koidu New Sembehun City Council, chairman Kono District Council, the press and many other stakeholders took place at the Sahr Musa Sessie Gbenda Hall Koidu City kono District. It could be recalled that, after the June 24th multi-tier elections the leadership of the main opposition All People’s Congress ( APC) took the decision of non-participation in the governance of the country on the grounds that the June 24th general elections were rigged in favour of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s party (SLPP) a decision which ninety percent of the elected officials of the party fully adhered to , unlike Hon. Mohamed Bangura who was officially sworn in together with other members of Parliament from the different political parties in the country.
The past political impasse between the main opposition party and the government raises many concerns about the smooth functioning of the country’s democratic process. With that, the international entities such as: The European Union (EU) and the United States of America as well as the Independent Commission for Peace and national cohesion initiated series of dialogues to address the said political impasse thus Foster a peaceful resolutions those dialogues initiated by the above named entities aimed to addressing the concerns raised by the APC and find common ground to ensure the smooth functioning of Sierra Leone’s democracy.
The culmination of those discussions gave birth to the decision to swear in the elected officials of the main opposition APC marking a significant step towards national reconciliation and political stability in Sierra Leone. The elected councilors who were sworn in were: Abubakarr Jalloh, Alhaji Sheku Mansaray, Moses Kongormanyi, Phebian Kellie and Fatmata Gandi councilors of the koidu New Sembehun City Council. Alex Mohamed Kombay, Andrew Tamba Korfuma, Abass Kanu, Sahr Musa Kamara and Abigal Koroma councilors of the Kono District Council totaling twelve councilors that were officially sworn in for both the city and district councils in Kono.
The swearing in ceremony was officiated by the substantive chief Administrator of the Koidu New Sembehun City Council Francis M. Tiffa. Welcoming the elected councilors earlier, the Mayor of the Koidu New Sembehun City Council Komba Matthew Sam and the chairman kono District Council Sheku Durkono congratulated and thanked the councilors for showing up to represent their people and encouraged them to take off their political lenses to work for the betterment of Koidu City and Kono District as a whole.
They assured the councilors of good leadership in the two councils. Councilors Fatmata Gandi, Abigal Koroma and Alhaji Sheku Mansaray when talking to our reporter thanked and appreciated the leadership of their party for allowing them to represent their people in the local councils in Kono District and assured their people of better representation.
