The Civil Society Consortium on National Accountability yesterday, at a press conference at the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ), accused two Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) of alleged leanings to the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP).
The Institute for Governance Reform (IGR) and the Centre for Accountability and Rule of Law (CARL) had published recent surveys which have been described by many sections of society as phoney. It could be recalled that the Speaker of Parliament, Dr Abass Bundu, has picked holes in CARL’s report, while the Office of Chief Minister has rubbished IGR’s Afrobarometer survey.
The two Civil Society Organizations had published reports which suggest that the Office of the President and the House of Parliament are amongst the most corrupt institutions in the country. It is against this backdrop that the Civil Society Consortium of National Accountably is now saying that IGR and CARL are”giving fictitious statistics to please their donor masters at the detriment of the country”.
Robert Kondima Kargbo, the head of the Consortium, told journalists yesterday that the statistics that these CSOs had come out with could not stand the test of time. He noted that, “such reports have the tendency to undermine the peace and stability of the State as the role of Parliament is to make laws and perform oversights functions amongst others”.
He continued that, “you may recall that on the 15th September 2020, the Institute of Governance Reform (IGR) and Centre for Accountability and Rule of Law (CARL), two leading Civil Society Organizations in Sierra Leone, published a perception survey report which classified Parliamentarians as the second most corrupt institution in the country”.
Mr Kargbo recalled that the report indicted the Office of the President as not being accountable and parliamentarians as not holding the Office of the President accountable, which revelations raised the greatest doubts in the minds of the general public. He, therefore, questioned the veracity of the research methodologies.
“As rightly noted by IGR and CARL, the demand for accountability has increased among citizens, therefore, conducting surveys also calls for the highest level of professionalism, coordination and validation”, Robert Kondima Kargbo concluded.
