SLFA top officials shifting interests to National Politics

By: Alusine Rehme Wilson

For the first time in Sierra Leone’s football history, two senior officials, the Vice President-II and an Executive Committee Member of the local football federation (SLFA) Alie Badara Tarawallie and Kweku Lisk will be contesting for two prestigious local council positions in their nation’s general elections slated for June 24. Although both officials have been awarded tickets under the same political party (the All People’s Congress), they will be racing for the two prestigious local council seats in different municipalities respectively the Northwestern regional city of Port Loko and in the nation’s capital Freetown. While the SLFA second Vice President Alie Badara Tarawallie has been awarded the APC ticket to contest in the upcoming general elections next month for the Mayoral top seat in the city of Port-Loko, his Executive Committee (EXCO) member Kweku Lisk has been awarded the APC ticket as the deputy to Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr the incumbent mayoral candidate seeking a send term in the June 24 election for the Freetown City mayoral top seat. The political aspiration of both SLFA senior officials has not raised any public eyebrows within the quarters of the Sierra Leone Football Association but some members of the football family are backing the two whole others are conversely opposing the move made by the local football federation (SLFA) 2nd vice president and EXCO member to declare and aspire for top political offices without resigning from their positions at the SLFA. “The aspiration of our VP-II and EXCO member has the possibility to pave the way for third party interference in the affairs of the football in the nation which is completely prohibited by the global and continental football governing bodies FIFA and CAF,” they claimed. On their part, Tarawallie and Lisk who’re busy paving ways to succeed in their political contests, believed football administration and national politics are two separate entities, but have preferred not to comment on how they intend to balance their work at SLFA and their political bids.