Koidu City, Kono District, Sunday 30 April 2023 – His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio has accepted and endorsed the declarations of three former Coalition for Change, C4C, Members of Parliament, who formally declared their intentions to join the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party, SLPP.
Hon. Emerson Saa Lamina, Hon. Rebecca Iye Sam, and Hon. Musa Fofanah brought with them almost all Paramount Chiefs in the district, emphasising the point that they had consulted extensively with the local authorities, party members and grassroots before the public event which took place at the Community Centre Field in Koidu City, Kono.
The chiefs openly blessed their children and handed them over to President Julius Maada Bio, confirming the willingness of the new converts as they crossed over to what was widely referred to as “River Jordan, the Promised Land for the people and district of Kono”.
“His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio, my Kono people, I am standing here today to confirm to all of you that I am the former MP for Constituency 030 and that, with my colleagues from the C4C party, we are here to officially return to the Sierra Leone People’s Party. The presence of the chairman of the Council of Paramount Chiefs in Kono District, who is ably representing his colleagues, is a symbol that we have sought the consent of our traditional authorities in our district to leave the C4C party and join the SLPP,” revealed the former leader of the C4C party in Parliament, Hon. Lamina.
He further disclosed that their decision to join the SLPP was because President Bio had restored peace and tranquility to the district and had also united them far more than any other government had done, adding that during the tenure of the APC government, they experienced indiscriminate arrests of youths, making the district looked like a war zone.
“Your Excellency, Kono district never knew peace in the last administration of the APC. For this peace alone, the people of Kono have spoken, and they are going to vote for you overwhelmingly with ‘Operation No Runoff’. We are coming as a result of the historical injustices you have corrected for our district in just five years.
“Your Excellency, sir, by bringing a university to Kono, you have ensured without prejudice to the North, South, East, or Western Area, that the Kono children will continue to appreciate you forever. The people of Kono are now enjoying 24-hour electricity, thereby opening up the space for trade, and also, seven chiefdoms are in readiness to receive a new lease of life by constructing a road that will link Kono with Guinea,” he said.
Hon. Rebecca Iye Sam, the first ever female Member of Parliament of the C4C in Kono, said, “I believe that the only way Kono will have peace and the only way Kono will develop is through the SLPP. I am here today not to declare but to come back to my parent party, the SLPP. I am not coming alone. I am coming with all my people and expertise to ensure that we develop our district and assist President Bio in developing Sierra Leone.
“I have 45 communities in Constituency 029. I am back as a prodigal daughter with my people, and I am pleading with the SLPP to accept me and my people back into the party. My five years with the C4C party have shown you what I have inside of me as a woman and what I can do. With the other two MPs, we are assuring you that we are going to give you all ten political seats in the district come June 2023,” she assured.
MP for Constituency 023, Nimikoro Chiefdom, Hon. Musa Fofanah, confirmed to the President that peace had returned to Nimikoro Chiefdom as per the instruction given to the chiefdom stakeholders, and promised that they would maintain the peace that the President had always wanted for Kono and the people of Sierra Leone.
“His Excellency, we are coming to the SLPP wholeheartedly for the obvious reasons. Your human capital development is felt across the country. You have constructed and transformed ferry crossing points with your partners into 15 mega bridges. You have surveyed 11,300 km of roads and constructed 1,800 km of roads. You have electrified seven district headquarter towns and provided water supply for them, among the many goodies.
“We are coming to the SLPP party with all our hearts, and we are coming to add value to your party. We are here to support and make our sister and brother very proud, and to also ensure our brother-in-law is proud of us too,” the Hon. Fofanah reiterated.
For More Enquiries: State House Media and Communications Unit
