Buba Baldeh on Decree 89, constitutional provisions

As political activities steadily gain momentum ahead of the forthcoming
presidential election, the deputy national mobiliser of the ruling APRC,
Bubacarr Michael Baldeh, has made clarifications on the much talked-about
Decree 89. Speaking to the Daily Observer, Mr Baldeh asserted that Decree 89
which had banned most of the previous political parties of the First
Republic and its former ministers was promulgated by the then AFPRC
government. He said the lifting of the decree meant that the former PPP, GPP
and NCP were now free to come back and register as political parties. Mr
Baldeh also asserted that the lifting of the Decree 89 meant that former
politicians or ministers of the First Republic "unless banned by the
constitution or by the Akoto- Bamfo Commission, were also free to
participate."

Mr Baldeh outlined that the final judgement of the Akoto Bamfo Commission
cleared 8 out of the 19 ministers who appeared before the commission,
amongst them were Alhaji AEWF Badjie, Mrs Louis Njie, Mr Mbemba Jatta, Mr
Mathew Yahya Baldeh, Dr Lamin Kebba Saho, Mr Sarjo Touray, Mr Alkali James
Gaye and Mr Baboucarr Michael Baldeh. "We were the eight who were not banned
by the report," he said. Decree 89 was generally a blanket ruling which has
now been lifted. I was affected by the decree, but not by the Akoto-Bamfo
Commission," he asserted. Mr Baldeh said those affected by the Akoto-Bamfo
Commission were the ones who could not hold any public office as stated by
the commission and entrenched clauses of the constitution which takes a
referendum to change. Mr Baldeh renewed his support to the APRC government
and called on people to rally behind the president and the party to win a
greater majority in the coming elections.









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