November 8, 2017 By Ibrahim Tarawallie
NGC Interim Chairman, Dr. Dennis Bright
The National Grand Coalition (NGC) yesterday announced that the party’s presidential candidate for the March 7, 2018 presidential election would be elected during a conference to be held in the southern city of Bo on Saturday, November 11, 2017.
The NGC was officially given the greenlight to operate as a political party by the Political Parties Registration Commission (PPRC) on October 18, 2017.
There have been rumours in the past few weeks that Dr. Kandeh Kolleh Yumkella, who resigned his membership from the main opposition Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), has already been endorsed by the NGC to lead them to the crucial election next year.
According to the party’s Interim Chairman and Leader, Dr. Dennis Bright, three individuals – Michael Jalloh, Mrs. Daisy Saquee and Dr. Yumkella – have come forward to be the party’s presidential candidate, adding that all of them will be given a level playing field.
He told newsmen at a presser in Freetown that the onus was on the party’s Interim National Trustees Council, which would be constituted during the conference, to elect the party’s leader through secret ballot, in accordance with the party’s constitution.
He said fully paid-up members who are interested to lead the NGC to the elections have until Thursday, November 9, 2017 to submit their nominations.
Dr. Bright noted that the party’s constitution makes provision for regional conferences and a national conference which shall be held every two years.
He said Article 13 of the constitution also makes provision for an interim arrangement for the running of the party, thus the formation of an Interim National Trustees Council (INTC).
“The party’s constitution empowers the INTC to take all decisions regarding the governance of the party as well as all financial decisions within the period of registration and one year after the elections. Our presidential candidate will be announced at the conference,” he said.
He disclosed that the party would be officially launched on Sunday, November 12, 2017 at the Siaka Stevens Stadium, and that the presidential candidate would be presented to members of NGC and the general public.