Should Political Rallies Be Banned Or Not?
By Edwina Sia Janga
Since the PPRC suggested that all political rallies be banned, there has been various oppositions to the measure, some on constitutional ground, whilst others over the incapability of the police to police such rallies. The main opposition party, APC, is of the view that the PPRC has to make clarification in respect of the proposed ban, and promised to come out with their stance in a press release soon.
However, among Sierra Leoneans, the views are diverse, with some supporting such move, whilst others opposing same. For those supporting the proposed ban of political rallies, they maintain that during such rallies, youths under the influence of drugs often cause havoc, disturbing the peace of other citizens, including storming shops and wares of traders along the route. They maintained that there has not been a political rally that has not witnessed violent confrontation. They gave as an example the return of the APC Flag-bearer to Freetown from Makeni after his triumphant victory in their NDC, where violence took place around the Calaba Town axis, leading the police to fire tear gas to disperse the fighting factions. They furthered that with the current tension in the country, the police will not be able to police such rallies, and when they can’t, they will be branded as bias and on the side of the ruling party.
However, there are others who see the proposed ban by the PPRC as a violation of the country’s constitution, which provides for freedom of assembly and other rights, to which the country is signatory to and has in its constitution. One member of the Society for Democratic Initiative (SDI), Mr. Mustapha, in a program aired on Epic Radio on Thursday, said that PPRC does not have the power to declare a ban on political rallies, as it is a constitutional provision, which can only be otherwise altered by Parliament, adding that PPRC is a regulatory body of all political parties and not a law maker. He maintained that while not trying to justify the violence that often take place during such event, his take is on the constitutionality of the matter.
In measuring the views of people on the proposed ban, this medium engaged different people across the city, some are of the opinion that a ban on political rallies will be very good for the sanity of the country whilst others are of the view that the Office of National Security has said that other security outfits, like the RSLAF, Correctional Officers, SLP, Fire Force, metropolitan police etc. will be brought on board to help police the elections. Their concern is if the ONS is unable to provide security for a simple political rally, how will they be able to police the election, which will rake p-lace across the country. They maintained that political rallies are often confined to individual districts in line with the campaign calendar produced by ECSL, as a result, the police should be able to hold meetings with the leadership of the respective political parties, define routes for the rallies, and warn them to have marshals that will help the police to secure peace during the rally.
Others suggest that the political parties allowed to hold their rallies, but that they should be divided into zones and spread across some days. For instance, a party can hold its rally in Freetown on one day, where supporters of that party in the East can process to the Attuga Stadium in the east to be addressed by their leaders, and when they process in the West, they should go to the Kallon Field at Goderich. But the fear raised by many is that it is not just about processing to the designated place that is of concern, but returning after the engagement. Many say that it is after such rallies or engagements that trouble flares up. They even stated that in the event that no rally is allowed, after the supporters have had their meetings with their leaders at a designated location, they have to return home, and often this lasts till late in the night, and they are eventually ambushed by opponents, and violence erupts.
But the debate remains open, with different shades of opinions given as to why it should be banned, and as to why it should not be banned. We shall continue to look at this matter as time goes on.
