By Lahai Lawrence Amara Lima-Yannie Jr.
Sierra Leone’s political history is often told through the lens of parties, elections, and personalities. Yet beneath these visible layers lies a deeper and older structure of authority—one rooted in indigenous governance, lineage, and custodianship of land. It is within this deeper structure that the story of the Dama Yannie bloodline must be situated, not as a matter of rivalry, but as a question of historical accuracy and justice.
This reflection is not aimed at discrediting the Sheriff family, whose contributions to public life are well known. Rather, it seeks to draw attention to a consistent and recurring pattern in which the rightful Yannie lineage of Dama Chiefdom has been marginalised, often quietly, in favour of politically convenient alternatives.
The Foundation of Dama Yannie’s Sovereign Authority
The original centralized leadership of Dama Chiefdom was historically situated at Giema, the recognised chiefdom capital in present-day Kenema District. It was from Giema that Warrior King Saffa Siacca Yannie, also known as Dowuii Yannie, exercised authority, consolidating leadership over land, people, and customary governance long before colonial administrative boundaries were imposed.
This authority passed through bloodline, not ambition. The father of Amara Siacca Lima, Maada Saffa Siacca Yannie, presided over this centralised leadership in Giema, embodying continuity between pre-colonial sovereignty and colonial-era governance.
Succession, Custodianship, and Distortion
Following the death of Warrior King Siacca Yannie, succession rightly devolved to his son, Amara Siacca Yannie, later known as Amara Siacca Lima. He was born of King Jaiah Siacca Yannie and Queen Mother Madam Mariama Yannie. Amara Siacca Yannie was also the nephew of Lahai Lima Koijo, who served as principal assistant and speaker to his sister, Queen Mother Mariama Siacca Yannie, after the demise of her husband, Maada Saffa Siacca Yannie.
During Amara’s youth, custodianship arrangements were made, including regency structures intended to protect, not replace, the Yannie bloodline. It is within this delicate period that distortions began to take root.
Borbor Dassama, often described as a regent or caretaker chief, occupied a temporary role meant to safeguard the chiefdom during the heir’s minority. However, over time, this caretaker arrangement became self-asserting. Authority increasingly shifted toward Konia and Kpandebu Dama, rather than Giema, the historic seat of Yannie leadership.
Within this structure, Musa Sheriff, who served as speaker to the regent, gained prominence. While this role was administrative and supportive, it gradually became politicised, contributing to a shift that sidelined the rightful Yannie lineage rather than restoring it when conditions allowed.
Recognition Without Restoration
The contradiction is striking. In 1950, the colonial administration formally recognised Amara Siacca Lima (Saffa Siacca Yannie) as Paramount heir, acknowledging both his hereditary legitimacy and his distinguished service as a World War II hero. This recognition followed the 1948 amalgamation and the death of Queen Mother Mariama Siacca Yannie in 1949, effectively restoring his inheritance rights on both paternal and maternal lines.
Yet recognition did not translate into full restoration.
Instead, political convenience, factional interests, and later national power struggles repeatedly delayed or diluted the practical exercise of Yannie’s sovereign authority. This pattern resurfaced during the formative years of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and again during the constitutional crises of the 1960s.
A Pattern, Not a Personal Attack
It is important to emphasise that this account is not an indictment of families or individuals, but an observation of structural repetition. The elevation of alternative figures—whether in the 1960s or in more recent political arrangements—has often occurred alongside private acknowledgements of Yannie legitimacy, without public or institutional correction.
Even Justice C. O. E. Cole, during the transition surrounding the rise of Siaka Stevens, reportedly acknowledged to Amara Siacca Lima: “The Yannie bloodline of your house owns this land and its leadership.” Yet once again, political outcomes moved in a different direction.
Why This Conversation Matters Now
History does not disappear simply because it is inconvenient. The unresolved tension between hereditary legitimacy and political expediency continues to echo across generations. When rightful bloodlines are repeatedly deferred—not through open challenge, but through silence and delay—the result is quiet exclusion rather than reconciliation.
Calling attention to this pattern is not an act of division. It is an invitation to scholars, political leaders, and traditional authorities alike to engage honestly with the foundations of governance, and to distinguish between caretakers and heirs, between administrative roles and ancestral mandates.
The Dama Yannie bloodline has endured not because of political favour, but because of history, land, and continuity. Recognising this truth does not diminish others; it strengthens the integrity of Sierra Leone’s collective story.
