During the signing of the family marriage between the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) and the National Grand Coalition (NGC) at the Bintumani Conference, some stakeholders made speeches which I listened to. Although Kandeh Yumkella's return to the SLPP via the Strategic Alliance does not bother me, I do have concerns about the reasoning behind it, which I will address later.
The joint SLPP/NGC press release and speeches made by some speakers suggest that KKY's return to the SLPP will promote national cohesion, peace, and unity in Sierra Leone. However, I find it difficult to accept this argument because KKY has always been a member of the SLPP, with his father being a prominent member of the party. Moreover, KKY has not contributed to any of the tribal or regional divisions that exist in Sierra Leone.
KKY only left the SLPP to form the NGC due to the unfair treatment he received from some stakeholders in the party regarding his aspiration to be the flag bearer. In my opinion, the disunity and hate speeches that exist in Sierra Leone are mostly perpetuated by the APC and SLPP, not between the NGC and either of the two major parties.
The truth is that both the APC and SLPP are responsible for most of the disunity and hate in Sierra Leone, driven solely by their thirst for power. When either party comes to power, Sierra Leoneans from different parts of the country are often discriminated against or even sacked because they are perceived to belong to the other side. Furthermore, when power changes hands, former government officials are often treated poorly, with some deprived of their state benefits and others brutally replaced by the new president.
Therefore, the notion that the SLPP/NGC alliance will bring Sierra Leone together is misleading and illusory. While President Bio is selling himself as a unity candidate and a man of peace, bringing back a political renegade like KKY does not amount to bringing Sierra Leone together. Instead, it is a campaign strategy aimed at fooling gullible Sierra Leoneans.
In my opinion, Sierra Leone can only truly come together when the leaders of both the APC and SLPP put the interests of the country above their political parties' interests. When the leaders of both parties work together in key areas that center around national development, then we will see peace and unity. But as long as they continue to pull each other down for political gain, I have little hope in the area of bringing Sierra Leone together. Therefore, I fail to see how bringing KKY/NGC to the SLPP will bring Sierra Leone together.