ULTIMATUM BRINGS PETITO DOWN – CSOs SUBMIT MORE
Let’s assume it’s the ultimatum delivered by Health Alert on behalf of the people of Sierra Leone that finally brought down one of the most powerful men in the Bai Bureh Warriors–Wusum Stars alliance, Alimamy Petito Koroma. We have to assume because we are hearing many other theories that we want to test against the realities that would emerge in the coming days and weeks. Our main sources in the corridors of power have promised to deliver soon. Keep posted. So for now let’s keep the ultimatum story going. Petito’s political career is now buried under the rubble of King Jimmy Bridge.
That Petito took Munda Rogers down with him is no surprise. Rogers has been on life support since De Pa came to power. There are many hard-core Red Movement people who couldn’t understand why a man like him kept his job even with the Matorma. De Pa made Rogers a poster boy against criticism of his Bai Bureh Warriors–Wusum Stars Alliance. Munda can now go off and continue working as an engineer in a private capacity. The real question remains: how did the man, who strangled the SLRA by starving the organisation of money, survive. The Road Fund Board boss should be very happy now: but for how long? If both men were sacked because of collective guilt, why is the RMF fella still in post??!!
As we went to press last night, two more civil society groups told us they were preparing their own documents to be presented to De Pa in the next few days. And they have the biggest SACRED COWS in sight. This should be interesting.
Education for All Coalition – They will argue that the long-suffering people of Sierra Leone are totally fed up with the complete paralysis in the education sector and the consequences of that for the human capital development needs of this country that is looking to be in the middle income bracket in less than 20 years. They want the minister out immediately and in any case not later than Christmas.
Their spokesman wouldn’t say what they would do if the government ignored their ultimatum because of the power of the man involved. Our cabinet insider has told us that it is easier for Arsene Wenger of Arsenal to sack Abou Diaby than for De Pa to throw his ever-misfiring education minister out of government. But presidents in their final term of office can be very dangerous and unpredictable. They have nothing to lose. All they care about is their legacy and LIFE AFTER STATE HOUSE.
Campaign for Just Mining – The mines minister fervently believes he is line to succeed De Pa as president of Sierra Leone. Hahahaha. So very funny! Anyway he is busy selling off large parts of the country to all kinds of companies doing all sorts of crazy things in the countryside. People are suffering in silence in small communities. As we write a former MP and his people who are campaigning for their land rights in Sahn Malen are in jail because of SOCFIN agri-business Company.
The ministry of mines is in a total mess with the minister busy organising the Red Movement as he prepares for his presidential bid. Recently the ministry had to publish the names of supposedly registered mining companies in newspapers asking them to register their addresses and telephone numbers with the ministry. So how did they start operations in the first place? Tie this up with the gradual takeover of Sierra Leone by Kingho and you have a scary situation which is a recipe for absolute disaster. Campaign for Just Mining has a very strong case against him. We warn however that he is De Pa’s point man for many things and a CSO ultimatum could only be a top-up for other variables that must be in place before the Ojeh-loving minister is sacked.
OKADA BOYS SPILL THE BEANS AS INFIGHTING DEEPENS
We are quite sure that even King Solomon now accepts that his bid for the presidency in 2007 was as impossible as him attempting to reach the summit of Mount Everest at this ripe old age. There were many odds against him including the obvious fact that basic services were dead.
The situation today looks very much like 2007 all over again – electricity is crazy, the roads are rotten (don’t mind that Petito nonsense about Rainy season), Journalists are being locked up at the slightest “opportunity” (that policy is being actively promoted from inside the president’s office), schools are barely functioning because the minister’s eliminations series and arrogance are still on, six years after he came to office, one international report after another is ranking this country in terrible light and there is a general feeling of disgust on the streets. Campaigning for the next elections is already effectively underway.
But the final event that took King Solomon down was when it became clear that ONE T-SHITT AND TEN THOUSAND LEONES was the way some of his people wanted to get him to State House. Now that looks like child’s play as De Pa is known to dish out US dollars to all nondescript groups around Freetown, as long as they pledge their love and loyalty to him.
On radio last week, Okada boys were at each other’s throats for US$ 10,000, two vehicles and several motorbikes delivered by De Pa just before the elections in November 2012. There were official denials of such undocumented spending but what more corroboration do we need. We urge all the people of Sierra Leone to believe the embattled executive of the Okada boys who have vindicated the EU election observers who accused the red Movement of vote-buying in last year’s elections.
We are waiting to hear from Belgium Sellers, Sweizzy Jewellers, Dollar Boys, Cassette Sellers, Car Wash boys and so on…By the way the Kabala Okada Riders also spilled their beans a few weeks ago. WONDERS WILL NEVER END.
PATHETIC PALLO CONTEH ON THE BACKFOOT AGAIN
The Dalai Lama of the PMDC once described Pallo Conteh as “one of the most decent ministers” in De Pa’s government. Well The Dalia Lama’s has called his own judgements into question a few times so we just didn’t trust this one too. In fact it was in that same interview that the nation was told how Pallo took two Ghana-Must-Go bags full of Le 200 million, to buy a piece of land on which he has since erected a mansion. This reminds us of the former Nigerian Senator James Ibori. Please this is none of the ACC’s business. The job is clearly stated in their act – arrest and charge hapless Head Teachers and Bursars in small community schools for UNEXPLAINED WEALTH but forget about people like Pallo. Arrest and charge and lose cases for lack of evidence to appease Gavi donors. Arrest and do not charge staff at PPRC simply because they fell out with their boss who is changing the colour and complexion of the Commission into something undesirable. But that is for another day. But back to Pallo…
In PR terms Pallo is on the back foot again. There’s confusion over the working conditions of our soldiers deployed to Somalia on peacekeeping duties. No matter how much Pallo says on radio and TV now, they still have a big problem convincing anybody they are being truthful. Sorry!
You see, Pallo could have told the nation all he is explaining now before the troops were deployed. He could have taken independent journalists to the deployment area to see the troops six months after they had landed.
He could have properly investigated all the allegations some of the troops are making with a view to addressing them instead of organising a media campaign to discredit the troops who are speaking out and the journalists giving them a voice.
We will not drill too deep into this issue as yet because we don’t want to unsettle our troops and their families. But the consequences of what Pallo is doing to the army will be laid at his doorstep in the fullness of time. Trust Politico!
MINISTER SAMURA: DID ANY SIERRA LEONEAN DIE IN LAMPEDUSA?
We have waited for three weeks now for our government to address the nation on what happened in the Italian coastal city of Lampedusa where more than three hundred people seeking to enter the European Union illegally, perished at sea. We have waited and waited for the Foreign Minister to tell us whether any Sierra Leonean died in that incident or the subsequent ones that also left people dead.
We accept that Samura is out of his depth in diplomacy but this is simple consular work and we demand to know if any of our brothers and sisters died in that disgraceful tragedy. Is that too much to ask for?
We recall that recently, we helped bring world attention to the plight of about 50 Sierra Leoneans who were heading the same way but got stuck in the Libyan Desert and were certain to die without the international assistance we helped galvanise. So isn’t it possible that more Sierra Leoneans managed to enter those BOATS OF DEATH?
Let’s go a step further to ask Samura to address the nation on what De Pa was doing to prevent desperate Sierra Leoneans from risking their lives seeking GREENER PASTURES. We know that conditions in many African countries, including Sierra Leone, are so bad that many young people believe their PROSPERITY lies across the Mediterranean Sea. But we have to be given details as to what the government is doing to end this unnecessary loss of life.
Speak now minister Samura. We must hear directly from your office.
(C) Politico 22/10/13
