FAILED LOGUS KOROMA AND THE THIRD TERM AGENDA
Those who know Logus Koroma must tell him right away that there will be no escape for him and his THIRD TERM MOVEMENT if they end up plunging this nation into chaos once again.
We heard him clearly on an APC –sponsored program on Universal Radio on Tuesday evening telling the nation that De Pa has done well for Sierra Leone more than any other leader before him and so there was nothing wrong in him seeking a third term in office. Let’s make the following points:
1. Universal Radio should never surrender editorial control of their programs, even sponsored ones. We heard a lot of things on that program for which the station is liable now or in the future. Money is sweet but broadcasting is a professional business with rules. The Station Manager knows that. Logues does not know that, we bet.
2. We warn Logus that any attempt to use the proposed constitutional review process as a window through which to pass the necessary amendment to give De Pa a third term will fail and Logus will answer for the consequences before the people of Sierra Leone and the international community.
3. Logus Koroma’s third term agenda must jump the following hurdles between now and the end of 2015:
a. Decent and democratic Sierra Leoneans who will not tolerate such retrogressive nonsense.
b. Opposition Parties that are itching to have their own cut
c. Progressive forces and disgruntled elements within APC who can’t wait for De Pa to leave State House. Actually one of them drew our attention to the program.
d. The international community who believe that Sierra Leone should be talking about much more important things than wasting time and state resources trying to keep one man in office forever. That is STUPID and totally unacceptable to them.
We are now carefully analysing the program and we will share our perspectives with our readers soon. At the same time we have passed copies of the program to other interested bodies. The job starts NOW.
LABOUR CONGRESS COMES ALIVE ON MAY DAY
So there was an organisation called The Sierra Leone Labour Congress in this country? Hahah. Never mind. We wonder because they’ve been missing in action for the last six years. When their spokesman went on radio the other day and told the nation that they've been actively "calling attention" to the suffering of the workers of this country, we almost called the radio station to plead with them to throw the guy out.
The Labour Congress in Sierra Leone has the most complacent and compromised leadership ever seen in labour movements anywhere in the world. Look at all what the poor workers have gone through over the last 7 years.
The last time congress took direct action on behalf of the masses was during the days of Tejan Kabbah when the price of fuel rose beyond the reach of the ordinary man. The government was forced to act. More recently that move was taken up by someone who was rewarded with a deputy ministerial position for betraying his colleagues, midstream.
Now we’ve been slapped with massive fuel increase wrapped up in the so-called metric measurement system; the price of food and that of other basic services like transportation rise daily. Between Brookfields bus halt and Lumley, people are made to pay four times in the same vehicle. The government has been completely unable to deal with such naked stealing from the hapless masses. Where has the Labour Congress been in all this? Consider the slavery in the mines and the killing by police of workers who dare demonstrate. Where was Labour Congress?
Now they have woken up from their deep slumber to celebrate May Day. May be they have secured some funds from some international organisation and they are using the same workers to justify the budget. Long live the battered and bruised workers of Sierra Leone! May this weak and compromised leadership of the congress be removed from office soon! Amen.
WHO WAS GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN IN 2007?
We've been forced to go back to our records to check whether by describing sacked former Information Minister Ibrahim Ben Kargbo as government spokesman in 2007, wasn't a mistake as serious as trying to land a 787 Super Jumbo at Hastings airfield just outside Freetown. We were stunned to hear De Pa say that Kan Kan Kan (who will be "sorted out" soon in Port Loko) has been GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN since 2007.
Our first point of reference was the government's own gazette at the time and we think it's still absolutely clear that Alhaji IB Kargbo was the government spokesman as information minister. Well, well this is probably a very serious mistake by De Pa and because he's just human, we are looking forward to a press release from the usual source clarifying the issue. We are ready to tender a photocopy of the government gazette in question as evidence should De Pa require help from us.
However, if this was done to deliberately re-write history or to minimise the contribution of the Alhaji to the work of government, then we feel extremely glad to be able to set the record straight. Long Live Kothor IB. We urge him to press on with work in his new role as de facto Vice President. Isn't he the man representing De Pa at all functions these days?
IS THERE NO OTHER WAY TO CELEBRATE IN SALONE? SO SO DEBUL
One holiday after the other, dozens of mask devils, hundreds of shameless thieves mingling among the crowd and distressing people in broad daylight light under the noses of Francis Munu and his boys in blue. Seems like every time De Pa calls a holiday young people organise masquerades and go on a free-for-all thieving spree, completely unchallenged by Francis Munu. In fact he grants them permission to process the streets of Freetown. Munu will never arrest those thieves because they don’t necessarily sing what he calls “INCH SONGS” – hint songs or songs not favourable to his political paymasters. But he will gladly send his people against opposition supporters outside the law courts and lock down the city because of “INCH SONGS”. He will ensure they are refused bail and kept in overcrowded Pademba Road prisons just to demonstrate that he is tough – and loyalty to who? We ask. This is Munu justice.
Munu wouldn't permit civil society groups to process even for the most worthy cause. Munu is a strange police man. And De Pa keeps giving him national awards. That's another topic all by itself – like his cabinet appointments; De Pa's awards are a clear statement more about how he wants to be remembered than anything else.
By the way, we humbly call on De Pa to scrap carry forward holidays. If a recognised holiday falls on a Saturday or a Sunday so be it. This business of carrying forward to the start of the succeeding week is causing a lot of problems and economic loss.
FIBRE OPTIC OR OPTIC ILLUSION? BETWEEN RHETORIC AND REALITY
Where, in God’s name, is this fibre optic thing De Pa launched not too long ago? After years of Kothor IB spinning the story in long, boring and unnecessarily repetitive interviews, De Pa finally launched the fibre optic with all the promise of a new life in cyber space. In fact it was more frustration which could have caused some deaths, you know.
Now more than ever before, internet service is erratic and the Service Providers could not care less about their customers who care to complain.
We are still waiting to be lectured more and more about this fibre optic project but for now we will hold on to what Kothor IB told us before he was sacked. And the whole country knows the rhetoric just doesn’t match the reality. You know optic illusion? When you think you are moving but really are static. In fact, the fibre optic thing is even delusional.
We ask those responsible to please come clean on the fibre optic. They must not wait until we find them out like we did to the other one called Bumbuna.
MUNU POLICE AND THE FBC BUMBUNA PYLONS
For more than two months now Francis Munu has deployed two OSD officers to guard a Bumbuna pylon that was about to be stolen by Munu’s leaders of tomorrow on the hills approaching FBC campus. This is a truly crazy way of securing government property especially when the two officers spend all afternoons being friendly with the thieves who have now colonised the White Water area near the small bridge which serves as the boundary for FBC property. It’s not possible for any thief to come from far flung areas to knock down Bumbuna pylons and in any case if Bumbuna was really in operation, would any thief have dared trying to steal that pylon.
Here’s what we think Munu Police must do: Clear the whole White Water area of those miscreants and bring in Musa Tarawallie to demolish those illegal mud houses being built in those prohibited areas where the Bumbuna pylon is located. But to share food, drinks and marijuana with the boys in the day and then take up arms against them at night is a real joke. We will wake up one morning to find those officers over-powered and disarmed and the Bumbuna pylons gone.
Why can’t Munu deploy two OSD personnel each at all 21 stands at the national stadium to prevent all the theft taking place there? Or to FBC campus where thieves roam free. We have a very confused police boss deploying very confused officers.
