In a surprising turn of events, both the President of the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA), Thomas Daddy Brima, and First Vice President, Harold Nat Johanson, were conspicuously absent from the association’s Elective Congress held today at the Gateway Hotel Conference Centre in Lungi, Port Loko District.
The Congress, which kicked off at 11:00 a.m., is a pivotal moment for Sierra Leonean football, as delegates gather to elect a new SLFA president and executive committee, including Vice Presidents I and II. However, the absence of the incumbent president and his deputy has raised questions about leadership and adherence to the SLFA Constitution.
According to Article 37 of the SLFA Constitution, the president is legally recognized as the head of the association and is tasked with implementing Congress decisions, supervising the General Secretariat, and maintaining relations with FIFA, CAF, WAFA, and other organizations.
Most notably, the constitution mandates that the president must preside over the Congress and executive meetings unless incapacitated.
Brima’s absence from such a critical assembly has not been officially explained, but it comes amid recent controversies involving the disqualification and later reinstatement of presidential candidate Aminata Bangura—an ally of the outgoing president.
Bangura’s candidacy was initially nullified by the SLFA Ethics Committee but later reinstated by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), following a contentious legal battle.
The three candidates vying for the presidency include:
* Umar Bah, team manager of the Leone Stars and chairman of Real Republicans FC.
* Aminata Bangura, co-founder of SLIFA FC and the only female contender, backed by Brima’s supporters.
* Babadi Kamara, chairman of Bo Rangers FC, credited with leading the club to three consecutive league titles and building the Southern Arena stadium.
As the Congress proceeds without the current leadership presiding, the situation underscores mounting tensions and uncertainty at the helm of Sierra Leone’s football governance.
