RED MOVEMENT MP ATTACKS WHITE ELEPHANT AGRIC PROJECT
So what's happening to those so-called Agri-Business Centers or ABCs that the GREENOPHOBIC man at Youyi Building says he has constructed in many part of rural Sierra Leone? Well, the truth is, they have completely failed but like for everything else, we are hiding behind our fingers shouting development, development and more development.
Now, a big Red Movement parliamentarian has gone on radio and told the world that the so-called ABCs are complete white elephants. Well, a good many of them. He said he found out that some of the centers were being used as cinema halls while goats and sheep have taken over the others. What should anybody expect from a project that we believe were badly conceived in the first place? Our Red Movement MP also said that local people told him they weren't properly consulted before the ABCs were constructed. Well, that's interesting. Let's try and see what really happened with some of these ABCs.
1. The truth is, the people were not PROPERLY consulted. But some consultation took place in the form of workshops where the GREENOPHOBIC man spoke at length about this and that and then the people received a few pennies for attending the event. Hahahahahaha, isn't that the way things happen?
2. It is likely that some of those ABCs the MP referred to are painted GREEN and the big man doesn't like the colour green. He recently threw a very important organisation out of a government facility because they dared to paint the place green.
3. It could well be that the goats and sheep are part of an elaborate animal husbandry project that could soon put enough protein on the table of all Sierra Leoneans. Even in such hunger, we are being told we are self-sufficient in rice, our staple food.
4. We are very concerned about the reaction of the organisations that funded that ABC project. What was this MP thinking when he went so public? Maybe the Red Movement should have pretended all was well. Good idea, right?
5. Let's just forget about any so-called ABC thing and get on with life. We are completely fed up with SPIN.
LEADERSHIP FAILS IN THE HOMES OF DEMOCRACY, SUFFERING IN THE LAND
We've been following the drama in Greece with a lot of interest. Here's a country whose leaders have so mismanaged their affairs that they now depend on an intoxicating mix of multi-lateral debts to keep their countries afloat. They are now made to go through the most painful of austerity measures ever in peace time Europe - DEMOCRACY has failed badly.
The people of Greece must be sick to death with the image of their country in the international media but they have to keep going. We even heard one report which says that Greeks can now only withdraw SIXTY-SIX Euros from their accounts. How can anybody explain this?
Maybe African countries should help Greece with some money, a kind of bailout package so that they don't end up becoming economics migrants in our countries. Sierra Leone stands ready to help. We will also encourage some of our banks to give some bailout loans. Isn't that great? At least that would temporarily take away this image that says all Sierra Leoneans are potential Ebola carriers.
There are clear lessons to learn from Greece but it starts with some real soul-searching about democracy itself. What is democracy? Is it working at all? Let the debate begin right now.
ANTI-SHERRINGTON PLOT BACKFIRES AT SLFA: HEADS MUST ROLL
We're not clairvoyants but we certainly know this society well enough to be taken seriously when we comment on certain issues. We certainly know the SLFA too well to be ignored when we say things about them. The signals now coming from Kingtom are clear about how the world came to know about a very bad tempered conversation between Pope John Paul and unwise old Jebor Sherrington.
We have now heard some names being mentioned. That's fine. We however believe there are at least two other big names involved in this appalling breach of confidence and odious leak of an otherwise private conversation by an SLFA insider. We've been told that the SLFA is setting up a committee to investigate the matter. We have no confidence in that process because we know the outcome already.
This is what we believe should happen with immediate effect.
1. Sherrington must be kicked out of office without any further delay. He should go home and explain to his wife and children why he would lose a job like that because of his love for salty language.
2. All the SLFA people who tricked Sherrington into exposing himself to the world in this way should resign and face a criminal inquiry conducted by the CID. This was a perverse use of social media.
3. The FC Johansen cabal that has taken over the SLFA must be dismantled. They all over the place - their players can be found at all levels of the national football teams and their officials are now running the SLFA. Let's do something about this.
4. Pope John Paul should be sent to an ethics school to learn how to operate as a public official. Cowboy nonsense must stop. Sherrington would never have approached certain ministers in this government in the way he did to the Pope. We put that down to the Pope's personality.
5. Isn't it time we stopped trying to obey corrupt FIFA by allowing Johansen to continue going around the world as SLFA president even after being impeached by 80% of the legitimate members of the organisation? This hypocrisy must stop. The FIFA edifice has collapsed like a pack of cards. Let the domino effect roll on.
KENEMA COUNCIL BUDGET THROWN OF PARLIAMENT AGAIN AND AGAIN
To ease the pain of the long-suffering people of the eastern headquarter town of Kenema, we have today decided to launch a Greek-style bailout for Kenema. We have no evidence that Kenema has mismanaged its resources like the Greeks. What we know is that somehow, the budget of that great city has not made it past the parliamentary finance committee.
The council and the parliament are alleging this and that. Our interest is in the welfare of the ordinary people of Kenema who have had to go without basic services for so long because for more than six months, parliament hasn't given the all clear for the council to access their money. It's only a matter of time before the lack of services in Kenema takes frightening proportions.
We will not be opening any bank account for this venture because we don't want parliament to invoke another of its many powers to close it down. Here's how we will operate: the Council Chairman will provide us a space to establish our office at Sinava Guest House in Kenema. That's where we will collect monies and other goods that ordinary people contribute to end the suffering of their compatriots in Kenema city. We will not accept any NGO money. NGOs like too much publicity and they spend a good percentage of what they raise on behalf of the people on their administrative expenses.
The money we raise will be directed to the following:
1. Making sure rubbish is collected and disposed of daily. The last time we visited Kenema, we returned to Freetown under serious attack of malaria. The mosquitoes were as big as butterflies.
2. We will pay the junior workers in that council all their backlog salaries. We just hope we can do that in time to save some homes that are already falling apart.
2. We will also provide at least one hot meal for children in primary schools throughout the city. It's good for their health and it will also help us improve registration and class participation.
3. The major roads can only be done by the central government but we shall spend some of what we raise filling up potholes that have taken over the main streets of Kenema.
4. We will buy air time on many radio stations and organise fundraising programmes to bring in more cash.
5. Some of the money will also goes towards paying allowances to civilian vigilantes who we have recruited to help fight criminality is some communities.
When we succeed with this, it will be up to parliament to end this brinksmanship game they are playing with the unnecessarily talkative Mayor of Kenema who gave that very long and somewhat confusing welcome address at the last SLAJ Annual General Meeting.
(C) Politico 30/06/15
