The Minister of Information and Civic Education, Chernor Bah, says the clash between the Quick Reaction Forces (QRF) of the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF) and two individuals on November 26 2024, was not a coup attempt. Exactly one year after the November 26 2023 attempted coup, a statement from the RSLAF said two individuals were killed “after a serious gun battle with the QRF”. 

The statement, which was titled “another coup attempt” identified the two individuals killed to be Captain Aba Senesie and Captain TL Conteh. The two men have been on the run since last year. The statement said they “returned to execute another coup.” Bah said the two men had resisted arrest and that led to their death.

A Sigh of Relief for Citizens

The Minister’s remarks gave a sigh of relief to Sierra Leoneans who were likely to have been scared by initial reports. In the aftermath of last year’s coup attempt, the government imposed a series of security measures. These included a night-time curfew that lasted over three weeks.  

The repeat of such an incident risked a similar response from the government. 

Although authorities said the incident that left the two dead happened in Waterloo, almost at the outskirts of Freetown, the reports left a scare. Abu Koroma (his alias) a citizen at Murray Town, West Freetown said violence in any part of the city causes panic that is far-reaching. 

Bah affirmed that this country is safe and that the president is “in charge” and “in control.” He encouraged Sierra Leoneans to report any suspicious activities to law enforcement. This is to help the government in its manhunt for the people who the minister said want to threaten the peace of the country.

An empty street in Freetown on November 26 2023
Photo credits: AFP

Underlying Issues

Even though there have been a string of military power seizures in West Africa, political commentators say they didn’t influence the coup attempt in Sierra Leone. In a BBC interview last year, Valnora Edwin, a civil society activist asserted that the coup attempt could have been influenced by issues such as politics and the economy. 

On the political side, scars of the 2023 elections are still fresh. The main opposition party All People’s Congress, rejected the results and boycotted governance for four months. International observers also condemned the election. APC’s boycott came to an end through a mediated dialogue.

Both the government and APC are still implementing the recommendations of the dialogue. 

In Edwin’s opinion, the renegades may have acted out of the fear that they could lose their jobs for belonging to the political party that is not in power. Political disenfranchisement is common in Sierra Leone.

The economy also “leaves much to be desired”, according to Edwin. The country is currently dealing with a record over 50% inflation, tax on rice and high energy tariff, among others. These issues may have played a part.

Government and Opposition Makes Improvement 

After November 26 2023, the government implemented new initiatives aimed at fostering state-society relations. One of which was the Presidential Town Hall, a gathering where citizens got to ask the president questions directly.

Sidi Yayah Tunis, a member of the main opposition party, APC, also said in a TV interview that the relationship between the government and them has improved. Both parties have a marathon ride in the implementation of the recommendations from the mediated dialogue.

The end goal is what the APC calls  “electoral justice.” A member of the party said this would ensure the mistakes of the 2023 elections do not happen again. 

Afolabi Adekaiyoja, a member of one of 2023 election observers missions believes this is important. For Adekaiyoja,  until countries address issues around governance and elections fraud, we are unlikely to see an end to mutiny.