It is apparent as far as the Organiser newspaper is concerned that the Sunday, November 26, 2023 coup was a stage-managed concert hatched by the jittery Bio presidency. Only fools would fall for the coup nonsense. Even the international community is aware of the dubious games being played by Maada Bio. No surprise that Maada Bio, the illegal President of Sierra Leone has started shifting the blame to the opposition APC party for the Sunday episode. Signed by the indefatigable Secretary General Lawyer Lansana Dumbuya, the APC party reacted furiously to the dirty blame game of the SLPP regime thus:

“We have maintained, in no uncertain terms, our vehement condemnation of the use of brutal force by any party to gain and /or retain power. We wish to assert, therefore, that Sunday’s unfortunate acts should not be confused with the reality that the APC, other political parties, as well as independent local and international observers, including the Carter Centre, have maintained that the results of the 24 June 2023 elections are lacking in transparency and fraught with statistical inaccuracies/possibilities. Also, the APC participated in the International Community Mediated Dialogue in good faith; we did so out of the desire for a peaceful resolution of the impasse.” (Photo: Leather Boot posed with Dr Samura Kamara). The full letter is as follows –

Statement on the 26^th November Security Breach

The All People’s Congress (APC) party firmly condemns the dastardly acts of violence that occurred in Freetown on November 26, 2023. The party has carefully followed these unacceptable violent events of Sunday, November 26 with grave concern, and we have noted the various accounts of the disturbance by various government officials, we are very much alarmed by the news that there was a breach of security at the Wilberforce Military Barracks in Freetown. We are deeply troubled that the security breach resulted in an attack on the armoury and other locations in Freetown, including the Pademba Road Correctional Centre, where hundreds of detainees were unlawfully released by a band of assailants.

The APC wishes to express its strongest unreserved condemnation of any acts, occasions, or statements that are inimical to the political and social stability of the state. However, we have also noted with dismay that in his statement to the high-powered delegation from the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), President Bio pointedly associated our great party with the August 10 protests, and attributed our party’s contestation of the June 24 elections results to these violent events. We CATEGORICALLY condemn any attempt to associate our party with any form of violence. As a responsible political party, we strongly believe in the assumption of power through the ballot box and not through the barrel of a gun.

That is why we have maintained, in no uncertain terms, our vehement condemnation of the use of brutal force by any party to gain and /or retain power. We wish to assert, therefore, that Sunday’s unfortunate acts should not be confused with the reality that the APC, other political parties, as well as independent local and international observers, including the Carter Centre, have maintained that the results of the 24 June 2023 elections are lacking in transparency and fraught with statistical inaccuracies/possibilities. Also, the APC participated in the International Community Mediated Dialogue in good faith; we did so out of the desire for a peaceful resolution of the impasse.

We have remained faithful to the full implementation of its agreement and will continue to do so to the completion of the mandate of the Tripartite Investigation Committee. In light of the above, the APC would like to once again express grave concern about the use of our Party Headquarters as a shooting target. As usual, the APC party headquarters was not spared from the shooting spree that characterized the 26th November security breach”, which led to damage to the facility. We further view, with utter dismay, the extra-judicial execution of one of the official state security personnel and the abduction of another at our former Chairman and Leader’s residence in Freetown.

We also oppose the targeting of our leadership and members by ransacking their premises on false allegations. We want to reemphasize that the APC as a political party is opposed to any form of violence. We reiterate our commitment to acquiring political power through democratic means and unequivocally denounce the use of force in politics. Given the magnitude of the security threat, and the emerging conflicting stories and accusations, the APC therefore calls for an inclusive, speedy, conclusive investigation that is fair, independent and transparent.

Signed:

Larsana Dumbuya Esq.

National Secretary-General

All Peoples Congress APC