TOLONGOBO IN CANADA WE ARE NOT AMUSED
So how do we respond to the letter addressed to the Premier of British Columbia in Canada by a man called Ibrahim Kamara, the Secretary General of the APC in that country? We’re compelled to do so because of the seriousness of the allegations he makes, and our knowledge of what is happening in Sierra Leone – thousands of miles away from the good country of Canada. We quote from his letter:
“As a Canada-based organization our duty is to inform and engage the Canadian public on topical issues about Sierra Leone including the ongoing human rights violations, dictatorial rule, brutalization of opposition members of parliament, gang rape, incarceration of political opponents, forceful eviction of women and children and intimidation of the business community. These acts have been supported by President Julius Maada Bio of the Republic of Sierra Leone.”
What was this man thinking at the time he wrote and dispatched this? Let’s deal with a few of his allegations.
“Gang rape” – Like seriously? If all Canadians knew about Sierra Leone came from the library of Mr. APC Secretary General in Canada then ours is a really nasty country not fit to visit. Is he seriously telling us President Bio has gangs going around this country raping women? And that same president turns around to declare a state of emergency against rape under fierce opposition from his Tolongbo accusers? Are we talking about the same country sir?
“Incarceration of political opponents” – We will be the first to raise the RED FLAG the day we begin to get even the slightest of suspicion that this government is beginning to detain people for their political views. As far as we know, the politicians now being picked up and detained are those suspected of stealing from their grandchildren when they were in public office. In fact many Sierra Leoneans who welcome the new government’s anti-corruption strides are beginning to express disappointment at the way some of these politicians have escaped jail by simply striking a deal with the Anti-Corruption Commission to repay some of the monies they stole. Yes STOLE – because paying back in their cases is a mea culpa. Please don’t get the people started on this.
“Forceful eviction of women and children” - Where were they evicted from sir? Did you find out if those evicted, according to you, were thrown because of a court order in a case totally unrelated to anything governmental? Throwing accusations around like this destroys this country for generations while you hang out in the safety and affluence of Canada. We will make no further comment on this particular accusation because we believe you threw it in there to strike an emotional chord with ordinary Canadian families. That’s a fail sir.
We believe there are serious human rights questions to answer in this country including overcrowded prisons left over by your government, addressing the troubles faced by Ebola and Mudslide victims and the refusal by the government under your party to deal with the many cases in which your police officers killed innocent people demonstrating against injustice.
We urge Tolongbo in Freetown to condemn this letter and all other unnecessarily inflammatory comments on social media from their supporters. Done properly, opposition politics can be really interesting. We all want that proper, decent and love-for-Sierra Leone opposition.
HIGH LEVEL DEFECTIONS FROM NGC: IS THERE ANYTHING WE SHOULD KNOW?
The rate at which top level people are quitting the NGC these days is pointing yet again to something in Sierra Leone politics that we are very familiar with – third parties are nine-day wonders that end up seriously disappointing many Sierra Leoneans who believe that the complete domination of politics by GREEN and RED must end.
In the last two weeks or so we read reports of defections to NGC in Kono district. Just when we tried to process that in the context of what C4C represents for the people of Kono, we received news that the NGC’s main man in Koinadugu had left. We’ve also been told that SOLAR MAN’s main bodyguard has picked up a job in the new government and will soon hand over his pepper spray, flak jacket and communication gadgets to the NGC and sing HOME AGAIN all the way to GREEN House at Wallace Johnson Street.
The NGC should let us know what’s happening before we wake up one morning to hear that SOLAR MAN himself has re-joined the GREENS. While we wait to see if that will ever happen, here’s what we think is behind all these big defections.
1. Let’s be honest with ourselves, opposition politics in Sierra Leone is not easy. How do you keep those vital government contracts rolling in? How do you continue to mix with the big guys in society and getting those little favours? Going to live abroad for the duration of the life of the new government is not an option.
2. In the case of Peter the Lion of Koinadugu, we expected him to have quit long ago. But with all this talk of an impending cabinet reshuffle, he wants to make it clear he is not an NGC man in the GREEN Movement. His job looks safe now because GREEN House needs Koinadugu and Peter The Lion has real votes in his bag.
3. Actually, the news of those defections in Kono was a clever way of burying the bad news about the resignation of Peter the Lion. So no further comment on that.
4. There is very little cash flowing from SOLAR MAN’S pocket these days. Restless party youths want jobs and scholarships but things are not looking good on that front either. Why stay on?!
5. NGC may well be imploding – like PDP like PMDC. Maybe we are dead wrong.
BSL AND NASSIT BUILDINGS: REHABILITION INCOMPLETE AFER YEARS
What’s really going on with the Bank of Sierra Leone Building on Siaka Stevens Street and NASSIT headquarters on Walpole Street? We’ve been observing rehabilitation work on those two very important buildings over the last few years and we have reason to conclude that the contractors have abandoned work, creating a real shame in the heart of our city. We want the heads of those two institutions to speak up right now.
Let no one tell us the change of administration is responsible because those projects were halted even before the last elections. Now we have a situation in which all the makeshift scaffolding at NASSIT headquarters would have to be pulled down because it is very dangerous after a period in which nobody paid attention to it. For the Bank of Sierra Leone we are not even sure of the quality of the cladding work being done on that building. All d bank dem wan falamakata ECOIBANK cladding. Hahahah! Not bad! But make sure you do it well. Remember the Grenfell Tower in London and the inferno there! If you can’t find money from anywhere to complete the rehabilitation please tell your contractors to remove those ugly scaffoldings immediately.
FREE QUALITY EDUCATION IS GOOD BUT LET’S SCRATCH THE SURFACE
There is no doubt that the significant investment in education the nation has now experienced under the new government’s Free Quality Education program is something worth celebrating. The government has put some money back into the pockets of parents all over the country, and enabled many others who would other be elsewhere be in the classroom. But while we celebrate we should not forget to look just below the surface to see if the monies saved by parents are really going into other services in the home. When we scratched the surface, here’s what we found:
1. The teachers and school authorities have devised new techniques to discourage parents and cause them to have some doubts about the Free Quality Education program. They use their agitation for an increase in salaries as a smokescreen to effectively down tools for several hours in a school day.
2. Ceremonial uniforms are all over the place again. Despite the ban slapped on it by that wasteful Gbamanja Commission, ceremonial uniforms are now compulsory in many schools. What’s more parents are required to buy them from the school so no need trying to look for bargains on the streets. Our concern is government and government-assisted schools. Those who choose to send their children to private schools do so with their eyes and pockets wide open. They can deal with those scandalously high fees.
3. Athletics sports meets have become something else these days. Apart from buying games tunics, parents are themselves spending good money preparing varieties of food and drinks almost as if they are preparing for wedding parties. We are keeping an eye on those school development funds that have suddenly become extra active.
4. Dash cards and sponsored walk papers are increasing in number and frequency. It’s beginning to look like every parent with a child in school has one in their bag. We attend to them every week. Also, can anybody tell us why children have to graduate in elaborate ceremonies at every stage of their education these days – from prep to nursery, nursery to Class ONE, primary to junior secondary and then to senior secondary…graduation, graduation and more graduation. What is happening? We salute the Archbishop of the Freetown Catholic Archdiocese for scrapping this extortion in his schools. We urge the state to do the same.
5. The minister in charge of basic education is recognized as a professional teacher who also really understands trade union matters, but the fact that this is happening on his watch is something we don’t understand. Trying to accommodate these attitudes to make school authorities happy will not be tolerated by the rest of the people. Otherwise the purpose of Free Quality Education is defeated.
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