Major (Rtd) Ishmael Sengu Koroma, a former Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, during the tenure of All People’s Congress (APC) led Government headed by Ex-President Ernest Bai Koroma, on the 1st June,2023 formally, in Blama Town within the Kenema District, declared for and joined the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) under the leadership of His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio.
His public declaration becomes the latest in the wake of the former Vice President, Victor Bockarie Foh, former Information Minister and Presidential Spokesman, Alhaji Alpha Kanu, former Minister of Social Welfare, Alhaji Moijueh Kai Kai, former Deputy Social Welfare Minister, Mustapha Bai Atilla and many former APC Members of Parliament in Kambia, Tonkolili, Koinadugu and the former APC District Council Chairman in Bombali, Eric Dura Sesay.
During a well-attended ceremony at the Ahmadiyya Secondary School Field in Blama Town, Small Bo Chiefdom, Major Sengu said, “I want the entire world to see this that I, Major Ishmael Sengu Koroma, am declaring for His Excellency Julius Maada Bio, President of the Republic of Sierra Leone and Presidential candidate of the SLPP.
“Your Excellency, let the entire world hear me out. One Country, One People. I have returned to my elder brother, Brigadier Julius Maada Bio. I want the world to note that after the 2018 general elections when we met, I was the first person to reach out to you. After knee-to-knee observation of your development activities across the country, I have seen landmark improvements.
“I have seen tangible projects that you are doing that have attracted people across the country, including those in the United States, where I am residing. I have seen Hands Off Our Girls by the First Lady, one of the major debates in the USA, by many. I want to compliment our First Lady for that.
“A long time ago, when I returned to Sierra Leone, I saw the airport. This is no joke; you have removed shame from the eyes of all Sierra Leoneans. Because when a visitor enters any country, the first impression will be the airport. That is a remarkable feat. You have saved all Sierra Leoneans and our country. Thank you very much.
“So, from today onwards, I am declaring my support to the SLPP and the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone. For this country and all its citizens, what we want is development. If President Bio is positioning tangible development across the country, we must support him.
“I am saluting the President, who himself was a military man, and his response to my salute means the game is over. It signifies that it is over. The President has returned to power for five more years”.
When Isata Julliet Kallon, a former APC Councillor in Koya chiefdom’s Baoma town, made a similar proclamation and joined the ruling SLPP, President Julius Maada Bio accepted it. She assured President Bio that she would champion his re-election campaign in that part of the country.
