WHAT ARE THE DOCTORS OF SIERRA LEONE REALLY LOOKING FOR?
Honestly we are struggling to understand what our doctors are really looking for. They threatened a strike some weeks ago and entered negotiations with the government as expected. The government then issued a statement announcing a deal to avert the strike. Few hours later our doctors issued their own statement pouring cold water on the government statement – essentially saying their demands were not fully met so they would still walk out as planned.
We weren’t in the room but from the statements we read, the only sticking point was the question of fuel allocation for those who should receive it on a weekly basis. The government would do the allocation and the doctors would be issued with chits for them to get the fuel at a designated petrol station. The doctors say they don’t like chits because they do not TRUST the government to make good on that so they want the cash equivalent paid into their bank accounts and they would then buy fuel.
So if we have summed it up well, can we now ask whether this little disagreement is enough reason to walk out of hospitals of all places and risk LIVES? If we have missed anything then let the strike-prone doctors tell us. As far as we know, all civil servants of a certain class receive fuel chits monthly and they line up at the Walpole Street end of NP station to fill their tanks. What is wrong with that? If our doctors really wanted to help, why didn’t they suspend their action in the interest of our sick brothers and sisters for three months and see how the system works? In the event it fails, the doctors would easily win the war for the hearts and minds of the people of this land that we love but as it is now, they are looking very bad.
This may not be the case but it’s easier for the government to pile up debts with the oil companies which they could square out in tax payments than not paying that money monthly into the accounts of doctors. Could that not be a reason Pa Demby is going the way of chits? Besides, why should our doctors ask to be treated differently from other servants of the state in this fuel allocation matter?
Meanwhile our SLMDA has refused to talk to us about that lady who died not too long ago following a very badly done surgery in which forceps was left in her abdomen for years until foreign doctors removed it. We used all the journalistic tricks we know to get justice for the lady but our doctors just couldn't subject their failed colleague to any disciplinary procedure. Anyway, the struggle continues.
ARMED ROBBERS ARE BACK IN FULL FORCE
We’ve seen recent pictures on social media of people who’ve fallen victim to armed robbery in Freetown. It’s not as if the robbers were on holiday since the start of 2022 but the good people of this country know that the criminals intensify their activities at this time of every year, in other words at the height of the rainy season. The stories we’ve read in the last week or so clearly show that the armed robbers are not afraid to use their weapons to deadly effect and they are really bold – operating as if Force for Good doesn’t exist. We aren’t alarmists. This is getting serious and by August, it could get out of control particularly in major cities.
Three weeks ago we received reports of several robberies in Pujehun town. Even the police there found it difficult to understand what was going on. Then those in the nearby district of Bo picked up. Freetown has experienced at least THREE serious armed robberies in the ONE week in which the victims were seriously injured while cash and other valuables were taken away. This cannot be allowed to continue. The police have to prove to the people of this country that they are able to protect the population from a few armed criminals who have given up trying to make a genuine living.
1. We appeal to parliament to quickly confirm the new Inspector General in his post. As it stands there is serious uncertainty in the SLP because all commanders don’t know what the man is bringing along. They are waiting to see the next move.
2. We don’t want to bother the new man for now but the first thing on his table is dealing with armed robbers that are bold and dangerous and from the look of things they couldn’t give a damn about the presence of the police when they want to attack.
3. Again, we don’t want to ask for a special police – military task force to decisively deal with this menace. We believe the police can do the job but there is nothing wrong giving them a bit more muscles.
4. We believe local authorities should quickly reconstitute neighborhood watch groups to serve as auxiliary to the security forces. They just have to be careful not to allow the criminals or their agents to infiltrate the groups.
5. The IG should also not allow criminal elements in the Force for Good to destroy his plans. We know they exist.
6. We urge ordinary people to be extra-careful and help each other.
OUR INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALLERS AND THE MINI LEAGUES OF FREETOWN
The coach of our national home-based side has just thrown a player from FC Kallon out of the team for disgracing himself in a mini league just hours after returning home from a successful national assignment in the Kingdom of Morocco. So just when we thought the whole affair involving Musa Tombo was enough to warn other players about our commitment to discipline and professionalism, we are now hit with another national player turning up at a mini league for God knows what.
What is really happening in these mini leagues that we don’t know but is powerful enough to drag full blown international footballers into their net? We congratulate Zappa for acting very quickly to let the world know he means business. We support his action and we think he should hit the player even harder and go after his wages. Our team is not in training yet after the last engagement so like others, he is on holiday, hoping to be recalled in time for the second part of the tournament. Apart from the disgrace of being named and shamed, Lampard, as he calls himself, loses nothing.
This is now time to do something drastic about how national footballers interact with mini leagues because of certain realities:
1. We may end up throwing all our home-based players out of the CHAN squad because they are all involved in mini leagues all over Freetown.
2. Our information is that the national footballers are always looking for money. The mini league organizers would normally approach them and offer them cash for appearance. The organizers would then use their brand to advertise the league and pull in crowds to make TEN TIMES what they pay the particular national player. This is the game.
3. We should not leave our national players and the Freetown mini leagues issues in the hands of their local clubs or the professionalism of the players themselves. They will NEVER grow up. SLFA should ban them from those leagues and enforce the ban. Even the best national player found in a mini league should be kept out of the national squad for good. Let’s tell the world we are not jokers.
