Does First Lady’s Involvement in SLPP Politics Unite or Divide the Party?
BY VOS Writer
Since Sierra Leone’s First Lady, Fatima Maada Bio, took an active role in the internal politics of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), concerns have been mounting from political observers and academics alike. Many are questioning whether her involvement will strengthen the party or deepen existing divisions.
The SLPP is currently split into multiple factions as competition intensifies over who will succeed President Julius Maada Bio as the party’s next flagbearer. At present, there are more than four major camps within the party — notably the Ebema, RIM, Juldeh, and Musa Tarawally groups — with the fiercest rivalry being between the RIM and Ebema camps.
According to Dr. Idriss Mamoud Tarawallie, a Political Science lecturer at Fourah Bay College (FBC), the party is already fractured due to internal “campism” and the ambition of various flagbearer aspirants. He claims the President has lost control of the SLPP, suggesting that this may be why the flagbearer election has been pushed further into the future — to maintain loyalty and political allegiance during the remainder of his tenure.
Dr. Tarawallie further questioned whether President Bio is prioritizing the preservation of his political legacy. He also raised concerns over the First Lady’s role, noting that the Office of the First Lady holds no constitutional mandate in Sierra Leone. This, he argued, makes her direct involvement in both public service and party politics particularly contentious.
“Will Madam Fatima Bio’s participation unite the SLPP or further fragment it?” he asked, warning that such involvement by a non-elected figure could either bolster the party’s cohesion or accelerate its internal breakdown.
