DEBT-RIDDEN SLBC FACING COURT ACTION
An intriguing court case that could completely destroy what is left of the SLBC credibility is looming. We understand that Rokel Commercial Bank has written to the badly-run corporation asking them to service their three billion dollar debt by the 15th of November or face "stringent" action. That unspecified action could start in the high court. How did the SLBC come to this?
Report after report commissioned by the government and the UN continuously finger the managerial ability of the Director General of the SLBC but somehow his backers in De Pa's government are very powerful and have managed to keep him in office instead of facing serious questions in uncomfortable places about his woeful inability to manage people, money and machines on behalf of the state.
The biggest losers are the people of Sierra Leone on whose behalf the UN and the government of Sierra Leone put a lot of money into the project backed by the credibility of the organisation's Secretary General and indeed the president of this country. It was hoped that the new outfit would properly democratise the airwaves that bring the country together. Gbanabom has done the complete opposite. Ask anybody in Freetown today about the quality of programmmes on SLBC, they will tell you the nation deserves better. They will also tell you that SLBC under Gbanabom has succeeded in dividing the country along party lines more than ever before.
We don't require any more studies to prove that the SLBC project that was commissioned with such noise in Freetown has failed under Gbanabom. Meanwhile he is hanging on by his finger nails hoping and praying for a miracle. Those days are gone sir.
PETITO FIGHTS TO PROVE LOYALTY TO DE PA
What's happening to our friend Petito these days? He was recently sacked from his big job as minister of Works a few weeks ago and he found himself on the Public Relations back foot straight away as at least one newspaper reported he was planning to re-launch the moribund People's Democratic Party to give himself a chance of going for his dream job - THE PRESIDENCY. He strenuously denied that in a one sentence press release.
The truth is that one of Petito's closest friends has told us his man has his eyes on the presidency. He cannot not now run under the Red Movement; a party that has sacked him for being incompetent in delivering the Agenda for Prosperity. The only option open to him is to go to another party. So we don't take his press release seriously. He may be running around De Pa to catch his attention and "re-assure" him of his "loyalty" to the Red Movement but that is only to keep body and soul together until the whistle is sounded, not by that SISTER OF CLUNY this time, please.
Petito completely forget the "base degrees by which he did ascend" and attached himself to new friends, we mean the same friends who convinced him he could be president of Sierra Leone. The people are waiting at the ballot box.
SACKED GHANAIAN MINISTER STATED THE OBVIOUS: RIGHT?
We are very surprised that anybody can be surprised by what that Ghanaian minister said about her reasons for being in government which caused her immediate dismissal. Even the fact that her comments were recorded secretly with a rogue recording device is not a surprise in this technology-driven world. Mind who you talk to. In Sierra Leone even you closet friends are busy recording your private conversations to use as a weapon against you in undeclared wars. We have come a long way and we know how to do things.
We absolutely hate the fact that Victoria Hammah entered politics to make money and not to serve. Why didn't she tell the voters that was what her political career was all about? However ONE MILLION DOLLARS is chicken feed to some of the politicians we are used to around here. So to that extent, our Ghanaian lady is not the demon she is made out to be.
We have a fair idea about a good number of her counterparts in Sierra Leone who have more than what Victoria Hammah is looking for and are fighting hard to get ten times that by the time De Pa leaves office in 2018.
John Mahama must be careful not to find himself in a situation where he will be compelled by media pressure to sack all his ministers for speaking their minds. Is the governance system so weak in Ghana (a country we respect so much) that one person can steal ONE MILLION DOLLARS just like that? Why not investigate how much of that she has saved already?
By the way, what if Hammah had suggested in an email to a friend that Mahama's government would fail? Would he have sacked her? Well Jo Moore, a Special Assistant was thrown out of office for suggesting to his minister Stephen Byers in an email that they should "bury bad news" on the day Osama Bin Laden's men attacked the greatest national on earth killing more than THREE THOUSAND people. The minister also resigned and the Tony Blair government pushed by public pressure reformed that unelected "Special Assistant" idea throughout government. But we are in Africa, so we turn a blind eye to many things even though we depend on countries where the standards are so high.
FEMALE NATIONAL TEAM CRUSHED AGAIN: NEXT SCAPEGOAT PLEASE?
The all-conquering Nigerian female team was in Freetown last weekend to complete the double over our hastily assembled child's play we call a national team. Our team was routed 6-0, bringing the total score over two legs to 16 - 0 in favour of the Nigerians.
After our disgrace in Nigeria, the SLFA blamed Coach Hannah Williams for allegedly administering an illegal drug to the players which caused "unusual menstruation" and bla, bla, bla that affected the team's performance. Williams was quickly sacked just to appease football fans in Sierra Leone. She has refused to speak to the media, always telling journalists she was in church but the captain of the team has told one radio station she couldn't recall ever taking the so-called drug. So what is going on?
With Williams gone, the Nigerians have slaughtered our team again this time, in our own abattoir. What new drug did Coach Kaloga give to our players? And his nonsense on radio the other day about noting the "positives from the performance and putting the goals aside", remains absolute rubbish. He should just collect his allowance and keep quiet and not attempt to lecture us about how to take in the 16-0 defeat of which he was an integral part. Our team was completely out-classed and disgraced. We don't want any lecture from Kaloga whose own premier league team - East End Lions have deteriorated to the point of being forgotten in Sierra Leone Football. Our coaches have been doing the same thing for years and are now very tired.
We blame our disgrace on lack of adequate preparation, sloppy team selection informed by SLFA politics and the unnecessary haste to enter a competition for which we were totally unprepared but driven largely by per diem considerations. We feel sorry for the girls but the whole country knew Nigeria would slaughter our team even before they assembled at Kingtom for their crash warm-up and team selection.
(C) Politico 12/11/13
