Human Rights Defenders Network-SL Condemn Parliament’s Suspension of Whistleblower MPs and Calls for their Reinstatement.
Human Rights Defenders Network-SL Condemn Parliament’s Suspension of Whistleblower MPs and Calls for their Reinstatement.
Human Rights Defenders Network Sierra Leone strongly condemn the action of the Sierra Leone Parliament in suspending Members of Parliament, Hon. Hindolo Moiwo Gevao and Hon Ibrahim Tawa Conteh from Parliamentary Committee Proceedings.
Hon. Hindolo Moiwo Gevao, a whistleblower, was suspended following an interview he gave to the BBC saying “that the institution of parliament is corrupt.” He was reacting to a Public Perception Survey report by Center for Accountability and Rule of Law (CARL) in which citizens classified Parliament the second most corrupt institution in Sierra Leone. Hon Ibrahim Tawa Conteh, was also suspended on alleged arm-twisting by the leadership of Parliament along with two other MPs though for entirely different charges.
Much as the statement tends to offend the perceive dignity of Parliament, it still could be classified within the ambit of free speech. And within that ambit, the class referred to by the Honorable Hindolo Moiwo Gevao in his interview with the BBC “that the institution of parliament is corrupt” is too wide and indiscriminate to be actionable. It would have been otherwise actionable if Hon. Hindolo Moiwo Gevao would have said the “Speaker of Parliament is corrupt or some members of Parliament (naming them) are corrupt”, but to refer to the institution of parliament is whistle blowing which keeps members of parliament and the institution on their toes. Section 82 of the Anti-Corruption Commission Act as amended provides for the protection of witnesses and whistleblowers and grants them immunity from civil, criminal and disciplinary proceedings.
It is widely understood that a press statement dated 20th October, 2020 issued by the Department of Public Relations of the Parliament of Sierra Leone stated that “Four Hon. Members of Parliament have been committed to the Parliamentary Committee on Privileges and Ethics for investigation for alleged breaches of parliamentary code of conduct and privileges. It is our opinion that until the investigation is exhausted and recommendations made before the Speaker of Parliament or Parliament cannot exercise any disciplinary measures against the alleged members if they are found to be culpable.
The HRD Network believes that the decision to suspend the Honorable MPs does not only undermine our collective effort to strengthen democratic governance and government’s stated claim to the fight against corruption, but it also sends a wrong message about our parliament’s attitude towards whistleblowers who raise their voices for accountability and institutional integrity in fulfillment of the Anti-Corruption Act and the New Direction fight against corruption.
The HRD Network calls on Speaker of Parliament and the entire leadership to reinstate Hon. Hindolo Gevao immediately along with the other three Members of Parliament. We further call on the Speaker and the leadership of parliament to focus on addressing the issues identified in the public perception surveys instead of going after whistleblowers seeking to work in the public interest and address “the cancer of corruption” that has held our nation back since independence.
Finally, HRD Network calls the attention of leadership of the Sierra Leone Parliament to abide by Section 82 of the Anti-Corruption Commission Act as amended.
The End
For more information or media requests, contact, Mr. Alphonsus B.M. Gbanie- Executive Secretary, HRD Network-SL on the above numbers.
Who we are:
The Human Rights Defenders Network Sierra Leone (HRDN-SL) is a coalition of civil society organizations and individuals working in the field of human rights with specific focus on defending human rights defenders.