By: Ilyasa Baa
Flag bearer aspirant for the main opposition All People’s Congress (APC), Dr. Richard Conteh has expressed the need for who so ever emerges as the winner in the race to reach out to losers.
He said reconciliation after the convention should not be underestimated if the party wants to be victorious against the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) come June 24th.
“I will not rest until I reach out to comrades on the losing side if I clinch the flag bearer position this month”, he said, adding that it is painful to lose that is why it is necessary to reach and console them.
He called on the party stakeholders to focus on the bigger picture which is to get back to power and not allow inter-party politics to distract them further.
He promised to be the first person to call who so ever wins to congratulate him or her after the announcement of the result. He said the party needs to learn from the past mistakes leading to their removal from the State House in the 2018 election.
He said though Dr. Samura Kamara was selected by former President Koroma with the blessing of the National Advisory Committee (NAC), not much was done by him to reconcile the party bringing on board the other aspirants.
He said elections or conventions have the potential to bring division amongst political parties with some members breaking away, noting that an election is about crowd amassing more votes and not losing potential voters, he warned.
The APC is expected to hold its national delegates conference on 25th February provided another petition is not brought up as seen after the conduct of primaries.
Meanwhile, names for various positions in the party have been coming up with billboards in strategic places promoting aspirants ahead of the convention.