NGC stays neutral
March 22, 2018 By Ibrahim Tarawallie
The National Grand Coalition (NGC) has refused to give their backing to any of the two political parties in the presidential run-off election slated for next Tuesday, March 27, but urged their supporters ‘to put country first in making their decision.’
The NGC, with Dr. Kandeh Kolleh Yumkella as their presidential candidate, came a distance third, taking away 6.9% of the presidential votes cast in the first round of the election. The party also won four parliamentary seats, as well as fourteen (14) local council seats in Kambia district, northern Sierra Leone.
While some people, including supporters of the NGC, were expecting the party to throw support for either the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) or the All People’s Congress (APC), others called on the party to stay neutral.
A press release signed by the NGC Campaign Spokesperson, Dr. Julius Spencer, yesterday stated that the message from widespread consultations with their supporters across the country was that the party should not endorse either the SLPP or APC in a coalition arrangement, which they’re agreement with.
The leadership of the NGC said they endorsed the message from their supporters not to support the two political parties in the run-off.
“In the light of the above, the leadership of the NGC urged all its members to put the country first in making their own individual decisions,” the release stated.
Also, the party notes the increasing emergence of tribalism in the politics of the country and urged the leadership of APC and SLPP to make efforts to bring it to an end as it would bode ill for national cohesion.
“We would like to assure all Sierra Leoneans that as a political party, we are here to stay and intends to be a robust opposition in and out of parliament. We will hold the government to account for its actions or inactions and will champion the cause of ordinary people,” the release noted further.
With regards electoral irregularities, the party noted that it had uncovered alarming evidence of irregularities which were also confirmed by other political parties.