Charles Margai Exposes Ineligibility Of ECSL Boss
In the early morning program, God Morning Salone, aired on Radio Democracy on Friday 2nd June, the Presidential candidate of the PMDC, Charles Margai Esq. told the nation that the current Electoral Commissioner of Sierra Leone, Mohamed Konneh, at the time of his appointment, was not qualified.
Elaborating on his claim, Margai maintained that according to section 76 and 171 of the National Constitution, Konneh should not have been approved as ECSL boss, because he did not resign his position, 12 months before taking up the appointment. He maintained that though he does not agree with the provisions of that law, yet it is the law and is still operational until amended.
He furthered that according to the said law no one receiving salary from the Consolidated Fund should resign 12 months before taking up any appointment, and that up to the time of his appointment, Konneh was receiving salary from the Consolidated Fund.
He further intimated that it is possible that his objection written to President Bio while he was his Attorney General, questioning the eligibility of some 9 appointees, could be the reason for his sacking, though he stressed that the reason for his sacking is best known to President Bio, and is well within his powers to do so. He furthered that a meeting held at Kona Lodge by top officials of the government may have advised that he was not a team player and should be axed.
However, during the approval of the ECSL boss in Parliament, no such allegation was made, neither was there any serious point of opposition against him. It should be noted that the President of Sierra Leone has the power to appoint people, but these are sent to Parliament for scrutiny and approval before they take the oath of office. Some political analysts say that while Margai’s claims could be true, but why did Parliament fail to question him on that?
