September 23, 2021
By: Francis F. M. Harding
The Supreme Court of Sierra Leone has on the 22nd September, 2021 dismissed a matter that was brought to the court by plaintiff, Mohamed Ayoba Joaque in 2018 against Dr. Samura Matthew Wilson Kamara as first defendant challenging his eligibility to run for the seat Presidency under the All People’s Congress (APC) party.
The Honorable Justices Nicolas C. Browne-Mark dismissed the matter and ordered the plaintiff to pay cost to the first and second defendants (Dr. Samura Kamara and Chairman, National Electoral Commission NEC) in respect of the case.
The matter was presided over by the Honorable Justice A.H. Charm, the then Chief Justice, the Honorable Justice N.C. Browne-Marke, Honorable Justice Eku. E. Roberts, Justice of the Supreme Court, Honorable Justice Vivian .M. Solomon, Justice of the Supreme Court and Honorable Justice Glena Tolla Thompson, Justice of the Supreme Court.
When he was reading his ruling, Justice N.C. Browne-Marke said that the objection of the originating motion was filed by the law firm of C.F. Margai and Associates on the 26th February, 2018 praying for the relief of enlargement of time to enable their client file a petition against Dr. Samura Matthew Wilson Kamara, on the grounds of ineligibility to contest as the All People’s Congress (APC) presidential candidate in the presidential election slated for the 7th March, 2018, the second on an order that the court should considered the application been bridge having regards the exigency of the time that is the presidential election scheduled for the 7th March, 2018, third the justice of the case should be remand for the cost of the action and that the motion was supported by the respective affidavits of Lawyer Robert Kowa, Victoria Saidu Kamara, Peter Bayoku Conteh respectively.
The plaintiff Mohamed Ayoba Joaque said that the first defendant is a British citizen, according to him he needed some interpretation, and that Dr. Samura Kamara did not resign his position, having been appointed Minister of Finance and later ended up being the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, under former President Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma government.
It could be recalled that the plaintiff Mohamed Ayoba Joaque wants the first defendant Dr. Samura Matthew Wilson Kamara and the second defendant the Chairman National Electoral Commission on the 3rd March, 2018 contesting the eligibility against the first defendant to contest for the 2018 general election.
According to the electoral laws, a petition of such nature ought to be brought by a registered voter within seven days of National Electoral Commission published the provisional nomination of presidential candidates on the 29th January, 2018.
Representing the first defendant was S.A. Koroma and Roland A. Nylenda and representing National Electoral Commission was B.E.T. Cummings
The first defendant Dr. Samura Kamara was in Court with some of his supporters wearing smiles on his face after the matter was dismissed.