KING MESSI AND THE DANGEROUS BRIDGES IN FREETOWN
Concerns are being expressed all over Freetown about the rickety nature of at least FOUR bridges linking the central parts of Freetown to the relatively affluent west of the city. The New Direction government is now facing the challenge of stopping any unnecessary loss of life and the inevitable political consequences, should any of these bridges collapse in rush hour traffic and kill people.
All of this is happening just two short years after King Messi left State House. The King was well known in this country for putting INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT at the heart of his Agenda for Change. In fact he once told the good people of this country that his infrastructure program would be so massive that the whole country would become a “works yard.” The infrastructure King encouraged his ministers to hammer that theme everywhere they spoke. Even ministers running ministries totally unconnected to infrastructure were singing the same hymn at every opportunity.
Under King Messi King, Jimmy Bridge collapsed killing SIX people, according to official figures. The nation cried. The bridge was hurriedly reconstructed but even as we write, raw sewage is flowing from the middle of that NEW BRIDGE. The promise to do Savage Street in particular in the immediate aftermath of that King Jimmy incident was not kept. One year after King Messi, the bridge collapsed.
So despite all the talk about infrastructure development and Sierra Leone becoming a “works yard”, the truth is a few roads were constructed in Freetown and other parts of the country. The quality varies.
The New Direction administration has no choice now but to do something about these bridges to avoid any talk of criminal neglect, should anything go wrong. We suspect significant amounts of money will be diverted from key manifesto programs to these bridge projects. Saving lives is the priority. How do we develop our human resource if we allow the human beings to do die if any of these bridges collapse?
FIFTY DUMP TRUCKS HERE: SO WHAT NOW?
Fifty dump trucks from the Russian Federation are in Freetown with a promise of TWO HUNDRED more, well according to social media reports. This is a fantastic gift at Christmas. Despite all the grandstanding and social media talk about how clean Freetown is under the Mayor of the Sun, sanitation is a serious challenge in Good Old Freetown. Elsewhere in this column, we mentioned the raw sewage flowing from the middle of King Jimmy Bridge. We probably don’t need these kinds of dump trucks to deal with that but all we want to do here is to point out the sanitation problems still facing this city. Ignore all the spin from the Mayor’s Delivery Team. In fact, who are they and where are they from?
Anyway, FIFTY trucks are here but we believe they will only make a difference if other actions are taken to support the work that the trucks are here for.
1. We have to pass the necessary laws to make it EXTREMELY COSTLY for those who dump rubbish on the streets expecting the state to clear it for them. We are talking about those who collect the rubbish in their homes and then in the deep of night, throw them on Kissy road of all places and other less prominent parts of the city.
2. We are also talking about those who pour rubbish on the left side of the road leading to Fourah Bay College campus from the Model end, just after the car wash center.
3. We must also deal with road side traders who couldn’t care less about the rubbish they deposit on our streets daily.
4. We are also talking about those who throw rubbish from cars, and other means of transport in the city. If we can successfully enforce the use of seat belts, we can get transport drivers to stop their passengers from throwing rubbish on the streets.
5. Let the FCC stop the spin and CLEAN THE CITY.
WE HAVE NO PLACE FOR LEWD REALITY TV SHOWS
All over the world today TV stations beam reality shows of varied concepts and most of them attract a quite a large fan base. In this our African continent it must be said that Nigeria’s Big Brother has garnered astounding popularity in this part of the world and one could actually sense the excitement and suspense viewers get from the evictions and endless drama in the location where all the participants stay for the entire duration of the show. Well the Show got introduced here a couple of years ago and this year we are having two reality shows going on at the same time, which we will come to address. But the growing concern by the public is the incidences of a lewd nature taking place in Housemates. Most of the show is on AYV’s entertainment channel though segments of it are shown on the main channel.
Many people were shocked last Friday evening to see on the TV’s main news channel segments of Housemates with footage of girls in skimpy outfits by the pool- side having a kind of party with the other male participants. It was a pool chilling they were probably trying to portray. But why on earth should the station be sending into homes those raunchy pictures of a very suggestive nature? Some parents were at home watching that main news channel when the station fed in that very appalling spectacle.
The show has drawn heated debate on social media about morality and our very societal values that are being put to a test. The argument put forward about “FREEDOM” is hollow because even in Western Countries reality shows et al are tailored in a way that evocative postures or gestures are banned. Let us be frank, some of the things being said about these reality Tv shows are so pathetic. We must never lose sight of our African norms and values. Big Sister reality show with an all -female cast has drawn a huge following because of its African countryside- like location and props etc. But the girls too must be reminded to refrain from use of foul language no matter the circumstance. IMC are you watching? By the way, why should both reality shows be staged at the same time? This is not just unhealthy rivalry but sheer pettiness we can say. Now audiences have aligned themselves to their own favourite show, perhaps a perfect picture that reflects how divisive we could become at times as a people, just because of ego and greed!
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