By Ishmael Sallieu Koroma
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone — As hundreds of supporters queued at ward centres across the country, some jubilant and others visibly tense, Osman Abdal Timbo turned to memory.
In a lengthy Facebook post published on Saturday, the presidential hopeful of the All People’s Congress (APC) linked the party’s current grassroots elections to a 24-year-old Supreme Court ruling delivered by his late father, former Chief Justice Dr. A.B. Timbo.
“A good day. A very good day all round!!” Timbo began, before recounting a moment that reshaped the internal politics of one of Sierra Leone’s dominant parties.
A Party at a Crossroads
In 2002, emerging from a brutal civil war, the APC attempted to replace its 1995 Interim Constitution. That document contained what critics called an “infamous selection clause” — a wartime mechanism that allowed party leaders to be selected rather than elected.
The change triggered internal dissent and ultimately a legal challenge that reached the Supreme Court. At the time, the bench was presided over by Chief Justice Dr. A.B. Timbo.
According to Osman Timbo’s account, the court ruled that the proposed new constitution had not been properly passed and ordered the party to revert to its 1995 Constitution.
For the younger Timbo, that decision was not merely procedural.
“The APC had always believed in full election process, save that the civil war prevented that from happening,” he wrote, arguing that the ruling restored constitutional order within the party.
Political analysts say the judgment helped stabilise the APC at a critical moment. It also cleared the path for the emergence of Ernest Bai Koroma as Leader and Chairman — a development that consolidated party unity ahead of the 2007 elections, which returned the APC to power.
Twenty Years On
Two decades later, Timbo says he felt compelled to act.
In 2022, under the Constitutional Review Committee chaired by Ibrahim Sorie Esq., the APC adopted a new constitution — an exercise Timbo describes as the culmination of unfinished reform.
“I made it a PERSONAL DUTY to write, with others, a new and progressive constitution for the APC,” he posted. “Despite all odds and 20 years later, we succeeded.”
For Timbo, the constitutional rewrite represents both continuity and closure — a bridge between his father’s courtroom ruling and the party’s present-day reform agenda.
“Democracy Is Back”
As ward-level elections unfolded this week, videos circulating on social media showed long queues of party members waiting to vote. In some areas, the atmosphere was festive; in others, disputes briefly flared.
Timbo acknowledged imperfections but framed the process as a milestone.
“Democracy is back in full,” he wrote. “It came with its challenges and the elections were not perfect all across, but majorly successful.”
The ward elections mark the first phase of the APC’s broader internal reorganisation, widely seen as crucial as the party prepares for its next leadership contest and future national polls.
Personal Legacy, Political Future
Timbo’s post concluded on a deeply personal note.
“To my dad in heaven, I know you will be proud,” he wrote. “This is the party in which you left me, and this is the party I vow to serve as we make it a vehicle for real development of our mama Salone.”
In a political landscape where history, law and personality often intersect, Timbo’s reflection underscores how constitutional battles of the past continue to shape Sierra Leone’s present — and how legacy remains a powerful currency in the struggle for party leadership.
