By Alpha Amadu Jalloh
Friends, Sierra Leoneans, and my countrymen, I come to bury confusion, not to praise it. I come to speak plainly, not to flatter power. I come to honour Honourable Tawa Conteh, not to disrespect him. For Honourable Tawa Conteh is an honourable man. He is the Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Sierra Leone. He is educated, sharp, politically experienced, and widely regarded as a defender of democratic procedure. Honourable Tawa Conteh is an honourable man.
Yet, friends and countrymen, it was this same Honourable Tawa Conteh who appeared on Liberty TV to sing praises of a woman who is not even a Sierra Leonean, even though she is the First Lady of the Republic. It was Honourable Tawa Conteh who chose to raise his voice in celebration of her presumed succession. It was Honourable Tawa Conteh, an honourable man, who spoke not as a neutral custodian of Parliament, but as a campaigner for a future that has not been lawfully presented to the people.
I repeat it so that no one mistakes my intent. Honourable Tawa Conteh is an honourable man.
But when an honourable man speaks from a position that demands restraint, his words must be weighed more carefully than those of an ordinary partisan. When an honourable man occupies the Deputy Speaker’s chair, his utterances are not private opinions. They are institutional signals. They echo through Parliament, through party structures, and through the conscience of the nation.
Friends, Sierra Leoneans, countrymen, let us ask a simple question. To whom did Honourable Tawa Conteh swear his oath. Was it to a woman. Was it to a family. Was it to a political camp or a future flag bearer. Or was it to the Constitution of Sierra Leone, to the laws of the land, and to the people of this Republic.
The oath of Parliament is not poetry. It is not theatre. It is a binding promise to act with impartiality, dignity, and fidelity to the Republic. It demands that those who preside over the House do not descend into open campaigning. It demands that the Speaker and Deputy Speaker remain above factional contests, especially when those contests have not even been formally declared.
Yet Honourable Tawa Conteh, an honourable man, chose to publicly elevate allegiance to an ambition over allegiance to the state.
Let us not pretend that this was harmless admiration. Let us not dress it up as innocent commentary. This was a political endorsement delivered by a man whose office requires neutrality. This was a signal sent to party members, delegates, and the wider public that the outcome of an internal democratic process is already settled. This was an attempt to sanctify inevitability before the rules have been observed.
Friends and countrymen, what do the rules of Parliament say. The Standing Orders of the Parliament of Sierra Leone are clear on the expected conduct of presiding officers. They emphasise impartiality, decorum, and the avoidance of conduct that undermines the integrity of the House. The Constitution itself enshrines the independence and dignity of Parliament. These provisions exist to protect democracy from exactly this kind of overreach.
Is a Deputy Speaker permitted to openly campaign for a prospective flag bearer. Is he permitted to swear allegiance to a person while holding an office that belongs to the whole House. Is he permitted to compromise the perception of neutrality that is essential to parliamentary authority. The answer, if we are honest, is no.
And yet Honourable Tawa Conteh, an honourable man, did so publicly and without restraint.
Friends, Sierra Leoneans, countrymen, when presiding officers abandon neutrality, institutions begin to crack. When referees join the match, the game is no longer fair. When the oath becomes selective, trust evaporates. This is not merely about one television appearance. It is about the slow erosion of institutional discipline that has brought our politics to its current state.
Honourable Tawa Conteh is an honourable man. But honour is not declared. It is demonstrated. It is shown in restraint. It is shown in knowing when to speak and when to remain silent. It is shown in recognising that the First Lady, regardless of her proximity to power, does not become a successor by applause or televised praise.
Sierra Leone is a Republic. It is not an inheritance. Leadership is not conferred by marriage. It is earned by citizenship, eligibility, and process. When a Deputy Speaker publicly anoints a successor, he invites the nation to question not only his judgement, but the seriousness with which Parliament treats its own rules.
There is a deeper danger here, friends and countrymen. What we witnessed was not simply praise. It was allegiance. Allegiance sworn for the purpose of consolidating camps, securing votes, and creating fear of exclusion. This is how internal party democracy is strangled quietly. This is how conventions are compromised before dates are announced. This is how members are told to fall in line rather than to think.
Honourable Tawa Conteh, an honourable man, has compromised the credibility of the SLPP convention by lending the weight of his office to one ambition. He has compromised the House of Parliament by blurring the line between national institution and party machinery. He has compromised the meaning of his oath by elevating loyalty to a person above loyalty to the Republic.
Friends, Sierra Leoneans, countrymen, I do not accuse lightly. I speak because silence would make me complicit. I speak because Parliament is not a campaign platform. I speak because the oath is not a prop to be worn and removed at convenience. I speak because democracy is not destroyed only by force, but by applause in the wrong places.
Let us be clear and factual. The First Lady is not a Sierra Leonean. That reality alone should inspire caution, not celebration. Succession in a Republic must respect constitutional boundaries. When a Deputy Speaker ignores these boundaries, he signals that rules are flexible when power is near. That signal is dangerous.
Honourable Tawa Conteh is an honourable man. But even honourable men must be called back when they stray. The oath does not bend for eloquence. The Standing Orders do not yield to ambition. The Republic does not belong to those who shout first.
Friends, Sierra Leoneans, countrymen, let us return to first principles. Parliament must remain neutral. Conventions must remain open. Allegiance must be to the Constitution, not to individuals. Praise must follow process, not precede it. And honour must be measured by conduct, not by title.
I came to honour Honourable Tawa Conteh, not to disrespect him. Honour him by reminding him of his oath. Honour him by calling him back to restraint. Honour him by insisting that the House remains above the fray. Honour him by refusing to accept that the future of Sierra Leone is decided on television.
History reminds us, from Rome to our own troubled present, that eloquence can mask ambition, and that applause can bury principle. Let us not learn that lesson too late. Let us demand better. Let us protect our institutions. Let us keep faith with the oath.
Honourable Tawa Conteh is an honourable man. Let him act like one.
