2018 All Peoples Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Dr. Samura Kamara, has cautioned members of the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) to behave like a force for good and not do something today that they will regret tomorrow.
Dr. Samura Kamara, who is the leading candidate for his party's presidential candidacy for the 2023 elections, called on the police to protect citizens and not become a menace to them, as their behavior in the last four years has not been encouraging nationally as well as internationally.
He said in the last four years he has been a victim of them and he has always behaved with respect as well as begging them to do the right thing.
"A few weeks ago, when we were going to campaign in the bye-election in Tonkolili, I encountered another negative behavior from the police and I had to give them an ultimatum to either shoot me or allow me to go do what I was going into Tonkolili to do. Just last week they were all over the news for another wrong reason. That has been trending all over the world because they refused to follow the constitution and decided to use "jungle justice" on an alleged suspect.
He said the populace that should respect them and run to them for help is now afraid of them because they have been shooting them, killing them, beating them, and locking them up with impunity.
He called on them not to be used by the government but for them to understand that they are paid by the citizens and they must protect them.
"We must continue to caution the police and advise them not to go down the path they will regret later." Politicians come and go, but the police force is always there to serve the people. If the people you are supposed to protect cannot trust you, then it will be chaotic and the confrontation will always be there. "
He said in the last three weeks he encountered negative behavior from the police when he went to Port Loko and Tonkolili. The former flagbearer said he was treated like a piece of trash even though he was pleading with them and explaining their role. They never listened and did what they wanted because they thought the government officials of today would be there forever.
"I am calling on them to change their behavior towards the citizenry and start to behave like the force for good they have been trained to be. The British spent millions of pounds to get them into shape, but it seems all that money has gone to waste. The elections are around the corner and the country is looking up to them to be professional and do the right thing. Please, I am appealing to them to see a reason to put the citizenry first so that we will have fair and peaceful elections. Don’t allow the government to put you in harms way and then hang you out to dry when they would have gone. "
Dr. Samura Kamara noted that for the past four years he has demonstrated courage, respect, and fairness towards the police, even with all the intimidation he has gone through during his campaign trail. He has not encouraged any form of violence amongst his supporters to not take the law into their own hands but to remain peaceful.
When he was put under pressure, Dr. Samura Kamara demonstrated good leadership attributes when he humbly bowed down and begged the police commander to allow them to pass through to Samaia Bendugu and assured that his supporters would remain peaceful throughout the process.
He called on all APC supporters to continue to abide by the laws of the land regardless of what the police are doing to them, as they have a goal and they must achieve that goal by 2023.
Dr. Samura Kamara during his altercation with the police at Tonkolili
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