By Mohamed Sankoh (One Drop)
The completion of every marathon always starts with the first sprint. And the All People’s Congress (APC) has just taken the first sprint toward the 2028 State House finish line with the successful holding of its Lower Level elections with few unavoidable hiccups that were expectedly expected—considering the logistical and administrative pressure-cooker-like atmosphere under which the elections were held.
Despite the naysayers at the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) had predicted and hoped for violence-infested and chaotic Lower Level elections; the APC Lower Level elections turned out to be some of the most peaceful in Sierra Leone’s modern political history—even more peaceful than the SLPP lower level elections that were conducted in circumstances that would have made selections into the Soviet Union’s Politburo looked hyper-democratic!
What was more comforting about those elections was the factual fact that during the processes nationwide, there were no incidents of destruction of property or the loss of life. This fact is not lost on the APC Leader in Parliament, Abdul Kargbo, who notes in a social media post that, “We commend our comrades for their maturity, discipline, and commitment to a peaceful democratic exercise….”
And to add more spice to that spicy spice, in an op-ed titled “Strengthening Party Democracy: Reflections on the Ward Elections” which has gone virally viral on social media, Dr Ibrahim Bangura, one of the leading APC flagbearer aspirants, notes that, “Despite [some] constraints, the fact that the APC has defied all odds to commence this process is commendable….As we progress, I urge restraint. I discourage anger and hostility that could cast the APC in a negative light before the public and observers. Internal competition must never turn into self-destruction”.
And as if to buttress his “Heal Unite Build” pacifist campaign slogan, Dr Ibrahim Bangura epilogues that op-ed’s epilogue in this manner: “I am confident that we, including my colleague flagbearers, will learn from these early missteps and build on the many gains achieved”.
And what is more heartwarming is the preliminary statement made by the APC Internal Elections Management Committee (IEMC) just after the conclusion of the elections on Saturday 21 February 2026. It noted that, “The Committee successfully conducted elections for 4,014 positions across the 446 wards in the Republic of Sierra Leone…. [And that] voting was conducted by secret ballot, and only duly registered and verified members were permitted to vote. The process was generally peaceful, orderly, and transparent. Candidate agents and accredited observers were present at most polling centers, and counting was conducted openly at polling stations immediately after the close of polls”.
Indeed, it is commendable that despite a handful of flagbearer aspirants did try to conjure rabbits from inside reddish hats; despite some aspirants cried wolf where there were only paper tigers; despite some tried to throw spanners into the electoral wheeling wheels of the willing, and despite a palm-ful of flagbearer aspirants had wanted to discredit the processes by trying to implement some of the “99 Tactics” of old; the APC Lower Level elections were peacefully peaceful in their peacefulness—generally!
Some of the takeaways from those elections are the facts that those who think votes could be monetized and bought have faced the rude reality that voters know where to receive monies and where to cast their ballots (Countless APCians have also shown that their stomachs and consciences are not on the same place!). And the second fact that has come to light is the realisation that those who have been fooling themselves that certain regions are under their locks and keys have now realised that those locks had been changed and the old keys thrown into the Atlantic Ocean. As we colloquially say at Soja Tong in central Freetown: “Some man na empty kerosene rubber—na de smell nor more lef but kerosene nor dae insie de rubber”! Indeed, some flagbearer aspirants are only shadowy shadows of their past selves as those elections have shown that they were hiding in fogs.
Another noticeable takeaway from last Saturday’s APC Lower Level elections is the fact that some flagbearer aspirants have painfully realised that their chances of becoming the APC Presidential Candidate at the would-be 2026 National Delegates’ Convention are unlikely just like the notion of a teetotal like me becoming an alcoholic by drinking Pure Heaven juice or Maltina! The pointed point is: liquids have started finding their levels!
And those levels will eventually level up in about twenty-one days’ time when the APC will conduct its Constituency Elections countrywide. But what is comically funny is how some of the flagbearer aspirants have been licking their wounds in the aftermath of the Lower Level elections. Most of their posts and analyses on social media remind me of our Soja Tong colloquialism of “Den dae kol den heart with pepe wata”!
And it is on that note that I will end today’s One Dropian dropping with a quote from Fulton Sheen who says that, “If two men ride on a horse, one must ride behind.” Indeed, some flagbearer aspirants must know that they are only meant to be followers not leaders because followers cannot be leaders!
medsankoh@yahoo.com/+232-76-611-986; https://nationalistsl.com