By Dr Philip Conteh, 18th September, 2026. London, UK.
London, 11th September 2026 –
The Day of the DIB Iron Ladies Rose, and a Leader Laid Out His Blueprint:
It was a Friday evening in London when the room fell silent. The date: 11th September 2026.
The occasion: the official launch of the DIB UK & Ireland Iron Ladies.
The atmosphere: electric, expectant, historic.
And then Dr. Ibrahim Bangura – DIB, rose to speak.
What followed was perhaps his most passionate address yet. Not a campaign speech in the traditional sense. Not a list of promises or a catalogue of grievances. What DIB delivered was something rarer. Something more valuable. He delivered a formula. A formula for saving the All People’s Congress Party. A formula for delivering Sierra Leone.
And the women who had gathered – the DIB Iron Ladies – listened. They understood. They had not been summoned by money or instructed by any hierarchy. They had mobilised themselves because they had seen what this movement stands for and they believed in it. As DIB would later say, this movement is not simply about money. It is about belief. It is about building bridges.
On that September evening in London, as the DIB Iron Ladies of the UK and Ireland stood with him, DIB laid out the three pillars that he believes can rescue his party and restore his country.
This is the man. This is the message. This is the moment.
The Formula: Three Pillars That Can Save the APC and Sierra Leone.
DIB’s message rests on three unshakeable pillars – simple to understand, powerful to implement, transformative if embraced:
- A United APC Is a Strong APC:
” If it is not me, that does not make you my enemy. If it is not you, that does not make me your enemy. We are all part of the APC.”
These words should echo in the heart of every delegate. Every faction. Every member. Because DIB understands something fundamental: any movement that revolves around only one individual is not a serious movement.
“The movement we have built is bigger than one person,” he declares. “We remind ourselves every day that what we practise is collective leadership.”
This is not the language of a man seeking power for its own sake. This is the language of a builder. A unifier. A leader who understands that the APC’s greatest strength has always been its people – and that its greatest weakness has been division.
“We respect those who support me. We respect those who are still considering their position. And we respect those who support other candidates. Not everybody will support me. That is politics. People are entitled to make their own choices. But after all of this is finished, we must still belong to the same APC.”
This is the spirit that can save the party. This is the spirit that can deliver Sierra Leone.
- Power Is Service:
“Power ultimately belongs to God. But we must also understand what power means. For me: Power is service.”
DIB asks the question that should silence every faction, every grievance, every ambition that puts self above party and party above country: “If power is service, why do we fight?”
He does not claim the APC owes him anything. He does not feel entitled to the flagbearership. He says it plainly: “The APC does not owe me the flagbearership. I do not feel entitled to anything.”
What he offers is not a demand but a commitment – a belief that he has reached a stage in life where he can contribute meaningfully. Where he can serve as a bridge. Where he can help build a party strong enough to win and a country united enough to prosper.
“Politics should not simply be about taking power,” he insists. “It must be about understanding what power is for and how it should be used. If the opportunity comes for us to serve, we must serve together. We must work as one.”
This is the humility of true leadership. And it is precisely why he deserves the delegates’ vote.
- Love Over Hate – Building Bridges, Not Walls:
“We have already experienced the consequences of hatred and division. We have experienced war. We have experienced destruction. We have experienced what happens when people turn against one another. We have already been down that road. So the question we must now ask ourselves is: Where is the love?”
Sierra Leone has been down that road. An eleven-year civil war. Deep trauma. Psychosocial wounds that DIB believes have never been fully addressed. More than twenty years ago, we began working on conflict resolution and peace building. Yet many of the challenges we discussed then remain challenges today.
“That tells us something,” DIB says. “It tells us that the quality of leadership matters.”
The Love Over Hate Campaign – Building Bridges, Not Walls – is not a political gimmick. It is a response to a country that cannot afford to repeat its past. It is a message that has already moved beyond the APC, reaching young Sierra Leoneans across the UK, India, China and beyond – not because they were called, but because they believed.
“This is becoming a movement that is not simply about money,” DIB says. “It is about belief. It is about building bridges.”
In a nation still healing, still divided, still searching for leadership that unites rather than fractures, this message is not just timely – it is essential.
The Bridge Between Generations:
DIB speaks of himself as a bridge between the younger generation and the older generation. He understands both worlds.
He was forged in the fire of the APC’s darkest days, when it was not fashionable to be APC. When people would question you: “Why are you there?” When his family home became a place of quiet resistance and rebuilding. He watched his father, his uncles, and many others who were not wealthy people. They did not have much materially, but what they had was love for one another, belief in the party, commitment and dedication.
“They said: this party will not die. This party will come back,” DIB recalls. “They worked hard every day. Some of them have since passed away. Some eventually left the country. But those who remained, lived to see the APC return to State House in 2007.”
He was inspired from a very young age. When he went to college in 2000, he became President of the student wing of the APC and served for four years. He worked for the party when many people did not want to be associated with it.
But he also belongs to the present and the future. He has lived abroad, studied abroad, built relationships across continents – yet his heart never left Sierra Leone.
“Even as a student, I could hardly stay away from Sierra Leone for long without going back,” he says. “Because that is where my heart is. That is where I belong.”
Who better to lead a party that must unite its elders and its youth? Who better to build the bridge that Sierra Leone so desperately needs?
The Man Who will Kept His Word:
DIB does not just talk about service. He has lived it. When there were difficulties involving young people within the party, the Executive approached him. The party wrote to him officially and asked him to serve as a facilitator for peace.
He worked with them. Progress was made. And when members of the NRM themselves recognised that there was somebody they could trust, DIB made a commitment:
“You are young people of the APC. If you end this dispute and come back, we will ensure that you are properly reintegrated into the party, because you are APC people.”
And he kept his word.
“I stood with them. I did not abandon them. Because when you give people your word, they must be able to believe you. Leadership requires trust. People need to know that when you make a commitment, you will stand by it.”
This is the man. A man who kept his word when others would have walked away. A man who believes that service does not necessarily require an office or a title. A man who is results-oriented, who believes strongly in quality, who works because he believes in the people of the APC and in the contribution the APC can make to Sierra Leone.
DIB: Calm, But Decisive:
“Some people say I am too calm. Some say I am too soft. But you can be calm and still be decisive. Calm, but decisive.”
DIB does not believe that everything must be approached through confrontation. He believes in God. He believes that what is meant for you will come at the appropriate time.
“There was a time when life was extremely difficult. But by the grace of God, we have travelled a long way. Not by any special power of our own, but by the grace of God.”
That is why he believes that if our genuine intention is to serve Sierra Leone, we should not turn politics into warfare.
“Every day we see tension within political parties. And yet people look to those same political parties as organisations that should provide leadership and help the country. If we cannot agree among ourselves, even on basic things, how can we convince the country that we are ready to lead?”
This is the calm, measured, decisive leadership that the APC needs. This is the leadership that can bring the party together.
The Women Who Sustained This Movement:
On that historic evening in London, DIB did not forget the women who had made the moment possible.
“I also want to say a very special thank you to the women. This movement has been sustained by women. What may have started with a small number of women has developed into a movement involving thousands of women around the world who continue to support what we are trying to achieve.”
He recognised the Iron Ladies – those who had gathered in London and those across the world. He thanked members of APC UK, the young Sierra Leoneans involved in this movement, and the many individuals who have quietly put their credibility, energy and personal resources into making this movement successful.
“There are people in this movement who work every day, often without recognition. Some wake up extremely early in the morning and are already distributing information, sharing our message and organising. They do it consistently. Every day. They are passionate about what they believe in. And there are thousands upon thousands of people doing similar things in different places.”
This is a movement built on love, not money. On belief, not entitlement. On service, not self-interest.
The Legacy He Seeks:
DIB does not seek power for its own sake. He seeks the opportunity to serve – so that one day, he can look back and say: When that man had the opportunity to serve, he made a difference.
“I want our children to look at us and say: We are proud of you. We are proud of what you and the others did for our country. That is the kind of legacy we should aspire to leave behind.”
He wants to live in the hearts of Sierra Leoneans as somebody who made a difference. Not just in libraries. Not just in academic journals. But in the hearts of his people.
“There is a saying that some people are so poor that all they have is money. You can possess money and still be poor in the things that truly matter. That is why, whatever position I occupy and whatever I achieve, I will always choose humility.”
This is the man. A man of humility. A man of service. A man of love.
A Call to the Delegates:
“To the delegates who will make the historic decision of electing the next flagbearer of the All People’s Congress: this is your moment. The decision you make will outlive you. It will shape the party. It will shape the country. It will shape the future.”
DIB has laid out his formula. He has shown his heart. He has proven his commitment – not with words alone, but with decades of quiet, consistent service. He stood with young people when they had nowhere else to turn. He kept his word when others would have walked away. He believes in collective leadership, in a movement bigger than one person, in a party that must survive and thrive.
He understands that the APC has a large constituency, and with that comes an even greater responsibility to Sierra Leone – the land that we love.
He understands that Sierra Leone is the only country we have.
He understands that if we cannot agree among ourselves, we cannot convince the country that we are ready to lead.
He understands that a united APC is a strong APC.
He understands that power is service.
He understands that we must choose love over hate, and build bridges, not walls.
DIB: The Answer:
Dr. Ibrahim Bangura is not just another candidate. He is a bridge. He is a builder. He is a man with a clear formula, a clear agenda, and a clear focus on the future.
A united APC is a strong APC.
Power is service.
Love over hate. Bridges, not walls.
This is the mantra. This is the formula. This is the way forward.
Delegates, take this as the honour of your lives. Make the decision that your children and your children’s children will thank you for. Choose the man who will make history proud.
“Do not be part of the problem. Help us bring the party together and, most importantly, help us bring the country together.”
On the 11th of September 2026, in London, the DIB Iron Ladies rose. A leader laid out his blueprint. And a movement built on love, service and unity took another step toward history.
DIB. The leader. The formula. The future.
DIB- We Move.