Official press release from the Ministry Of Defence on why armies have not yet voted for the election.Below is how AwarenessTimes is reporting it:
The Ministry of Defence and the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces’ attention is drawn to series of online publications and discussions on social media regarding the morale of the force and a purported Special Voting Exercise for troops due deployment to Somalia and Darfur.
In another related development, the Ministry of Defence and the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces is deeply concerned about a front page article in the Unity Now publication of 6th November 2012 captioned “APC Sojas to Cause Mayhem on Polling Day?”
These publications and online engagements, the Ministry of Defence and the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces views as a misrepresentation of the facts and an attempt to undermine the forces’ cohesion. The Ministry of Defence/Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces wish to make it abundantly clear that service personnel due deployment overseas did not take part in any voting exercise at any moment and they are still in country on final deployment administration.
Also on the story about the planned repatriation of our Contingent from Darfur, Sudan; the deficiencies in our equipment cited as the reason for the repatriation have all been procured long ago and now in the process of being shipped. The Ministry of Defence has activated contacts with the United Nations to inform them of the development. The outcome will be made public as soon as the reaction of the United Nation is known.
At this defining moment in our democratic history and our expected roles in the electioneering process, the armed forces is calling on all political parties and the general citizenry to refrain from involving the military in political discourse bothering on national security.
As respecters of civilian oversight and the Rule of Law, the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces firmly condemns any suggestion or insinuation of an institutional collaboration to employ its personnel to disrupt the democratic process. The Ministry also wishes to put the record straight that the vehicles stated in the Unity Now article are a Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces buy from its extra budgetary support as its fleet is depleted owing to deployments for National Election Commission duties.
In light of this, the Ministry of Defence/Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces hereby restate its apolitical posture in the forthcoming elections, and determination to maintain its past accomplishment during the 2007 Elections, foster goodwill and public support from its taxpayers.
Source: AwarenessTimes
Picture: Sierra Leone Org
