By Makutu Manneh
The People’s Alliance Party has withdrawn from ongoing opposition coalition talks, citing objections to the inclusion of unregistered political parties, civic movements, and civil society organizations in the decision-making process.
In a letter dated July 31, 2026, and addressed to the chairperson of the Coalition Taskforce Mediation Committee, the party said it had joined the discussions on the understanding that they would involve only registered political parties.
The framework later changed, PAP said, to include unregistered groups and grant them voting rights equal to those of registered parties.
“Our participation was based on the understanding that the process was exclusively intended for registered political parties,” the party said. “However, the subsequent inclusion of unregistered political parties, movements, and civil society organizations, granting them the same voting rights as duly registered political parties, altered the initially agreed framework communicated to us.”
PAP said it had raised its concerns during the discussions, arguing that equal voting rights for registered parties and unregistered groups were neither practical nor fair.
The party said the arrangement could give unregistered groups disproportionate influence over major decisions, including the selection of a coalition candidate, because of their numerical advantage in the process.
As a result, PAP said, the talks no longer reflected the terms under which it had agreed to participate.
The party thanked the mediation committee for the time and effort devoted to the process and said it remained respectful of the committee’s work. It wished the remaining participants well in their efforts to promote dialogue and cooperation in the national interest.
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