Political Activities Take Center Stage without PPRC Whistle

by Theo Nicol

Last Saturday has proved to all of us that we do not necessarily need the PPRC, who are the legal body with such a mandate, to blow the whistle before election campaigns start.

From my office at Siaka Stevens Street, I watched the rally the SLPP had to usher in campaigns for Maada Bio, using the so called maiden speech occasion as the ticket to start campaigns full swing with special music composed for the rallies that was being danced to by thousands of Bio’s followers and officials of the party along the major streets of Freetown.

It was indeed a day as the streets were painted green and the party slogan was chanted just like any political rally for votes.

I know the APC have also used the occasion of the current government’s fourth anniversary in office for them to campaign in the form of ministers presenting report cards on SLBC and radio and also with speeches made by the president as he travels around the country asking voters to consider his development efforts as a reason why they should vote for him again come 2012.

The other parties however, the PMDC and the NDA are late starters as they have not done anything meaningful to show that they are serious contenders for the presidency next year. Well, except for the power tussle that the PMDC seems to be enjoying.

My only concern however, is that the PPRC, the body with the mandate to blow the whistle for election campaigns to start has not done so, which makes the entire thing look like all the political parties are taking advantage of a PPRC that seems to be taking a back seat at a time when it should be in the fore front sanitizing the political atmosphere and doing what it is supposed to be doing.

I am beginning to worry whether the PPRC is in control, especially when the new Chair, in the person of Justice Samuel Ademusu took office some months back, yet it appears that he is still reading the handing over notes left by Ade Caesar, while the parties are doing things on their own without his permission.

It is my candid opinion that the PPRC should wake up and take the bull by the horn as the political parties have the tendency to overstep their bounds if they notice that there is no authority to keep them in check.

Justice Ademusu must make us feel the presence of the PPRC right now so that we all shall feel safe that at the end of the day, they will be able to contain any mess that any of these parties might want to spring on the people. After all, that is the PPRC’s legal mandate and it is not asking too much calling on them to put that into action.

That is my view.