By:Thaimu Bai Sesay
After subscribing to the oath of office and being declared as the new Opposition Leader in the Sixth Parliament of the Second Republic of Sierra Leone on Tuesday 7th November 2023, Hon. Abdul Kargbo in an interview has explained on the state of the ECOWAS Parliament seats as they fully converged.
Honourable. Abdul Kargbo the new Opposition Leader succeeding Hon. Chernoh Maju Bah in the well of Parliament explained that based on the supplementary act of ECOWAS passed in December 2016 in Abuja, it was stated that in an event where there is a vacancy, member states are supposed to send a replacement, as he explained that when a Member of Parliament lost his or her seat in his or her country’s parliament that MP also lost his or her ECOWAS seat.
The new Opposition Leader revealed that both their two representatives Chernoh Maju Bah and another MP at ECOWS lost their seats at ECOWAS because they lost their seats in their country’s parliament which is the Sixth Parliament. Hon. Kargbo said as their tenure in the ECOWAS Parliament would still run on to March 2024 the party would need to find replacement for them, adding that it was the mandate of the party not the Parliament.
Hon. Abdul Kargbo said as it was stated in the ECOWAS act that the representation of member’s state at ECOWAS should be reflective to the political party makeup, he stated that APC had 40 percent while SLPP had 60 Percent in the Sixth Parliament. “So if there should be five representations from the APC and SLPP, there should be three from the SLPP and two from the APC and it is sacrosanct that those representations are not made by the Parliament of Sierra Leone but recommendation are made by the political party,” he stated.
As part of his moral obligation as Opposition Leader in the well, Hon. Kargbo assured to unite the party and ensure that they respond to questions and vote on any bill in unity. He added that notwithstanding that, the party had its own structures which they hardly go against in terms actions taken against people engaging in antiparty activities as he said that was part of their loyal commitment to their party.
“Boycott is a normal practice in every other parliament it is not a crime and nobody should be penalized because of boycotting parliament. Boycott is part of protest and it is parliamentary,” the new Leader of Opposition in the Sixth Parliament of the Second Republic of Sierra Leone Hon. Abdul Kargbo stated.
The Honourable from Koinadugu District Daniel Brima Koroma in an interview admitted that their presence at the well of the Sixth Parliament was part of the clauses in the dialogue agreement, adding that they were looking forward to the implementation of all the other clauses emphasizing clause three of the dialogue agreement.
