There were violent clashes on Monday night at Hamilton, on the Freetown peninsula between supporters of the ruling SLPP party and the main opposition APC party ahead of the 24 August parliamentary bye-election.
It was the day for the APC to hold their rally ahead of the parliamentary bye-election for Constituency 110 in the Western Area rural district.
But according to the party’s Deputy Organising Secretary, Karamoh Kabba, they came under attack allegedly by supporters of the ruling SLPP who he said pelted them with stones around 7 PM, dispersing their rally.
He alleged that at least three of their supporters were physically attacked, naming the victims as Hawanatu Sesay whom he said sustained injury to her left foot, Yakuba Janneh who was allegedly stabbed in the lower abdomen and Moses Marrah who was stoned and sustained injury.
Kabba, who was arrested shortly after talking to Politico, said the incident meant they could not continue to River Number 2 where they had also planned to campaign, with the election scheduled for 24 August.
He accused the ruling party candidate, Josephine Jackson of complicity.
But there has been a different version of events by both Mrs Jackson and the police.
The police Local Unit Commander, Chief Supt Musa Bandabla, said the day’s rally had ended but that for some inexplicable reasons some APC supporters converged around Femi Turner Drive in Goderich and returned to Hamilton where they attacked the residence of Mrs Jackson and torched two vehicles parked inside her compound after pelting stones at her house. He said they arrested Mr Kabba because of his alleged involvement in the attack on the home of Mrs Jackson.
The SLPP candidate herself told Politico that her house was set on fire after being stoned and her two 4x4s also torched by APC supporters allegedly led by some of the party’s big hitters among them Mr Kabbah.
The bye-election has been necessitated by a high court ruling that called for it, following a petition by SLPP party.
© 2019 Politico Online
