NATIONAL FREE FLOW AS ELECTION FEVER GRIPS SALONE
Just look around and see how things are happening as we move towards the election. In fact we are only one hundred days now to the big event. A kind of national free flow is in full swing. Ministers are abandoning their offices during working hours to go on radio to debate civil wars in their parties; lawlessness all over the place; taxi and poda-poda drivers and the new cousins, the Okada riders, having a field day and taking advantage of defenceless passengers; criminals growing increasingly bold using fire arms to distress people. And you know, the governments is not willing to act and even the opposition is feeling constrained to make strong position statements. They are afraid they will lose votes.
In this regard we warn our brothers and sisters of Mama Salone not to take any chances when they face uncomfortable situations on the streets or even in their own backyard. We are all looking over our shoulders as a nation where everybody thinks they can do anything and get away with it. Street trading is going unchecked and it’s spreading to previously unoccupied areas; there’s filth in many street corners – any wonder why cholera has entered the nation’s food chain? It’s getting serious. There’s too much politics in the life of ordinary people. Genuine criticisms are crushed by party hacks with unrelenting venom. We have to warn, not for the first time, that governments are elected to protect the people and maximize their welfare. It’s as straight forward as that.
CHIEF SIDIKIE AND HIS MANY “CREDITORS”: THE LIST IS GROWING
We have been receiving unsolicited mails from all sorts of people about CHIEF SIDIKIE’s failure to re-pay tens of thousands of dollars in debts owed to them just before and during CHIEF SIDIKIE’s tenure as a big man in Salone. He recently called the Mother of all press conferences to categorically deny the first of such allegations. Until a court decides between Mark Heiligman and the CHIEF, we will hold fire as far as the legal aspects of that are concerned. We will not stop asking moral questions though as the image of this country is at stake and nobody will drive us from that position.
Now we have other sets of allegations coming through. We are weighing things up and we shall act as Sierra Leoneans at a time of our own choosing.
May be the CHIEF should have waited for all the allegations to come through before calling a news conference. Or maybe he should call another – the FATHER OF ALL PRESS CONFERENCES. Now much more serious allegations have been made by a company we know you were clearly associated with. The people are waiting to hear from you again sir.
All we must say now is that our country’s image is being dragged into these murky deals everyday and let no one fool you, we are not happy about that. If your political enemies are at work as has been suggested elsewhere, then we are sorry you played right into their hands. Please do the honourable thing now.
PMDC LEADER BLAMES PARLIAMENT: DOES THAT INCLUDE YOUR MP’S
The Dalai Lama was on radio the other day blaming parliament for creating the legal loop hole through which Christiana was able to slip and ask for those huge sums of money as candidate fees for the November elections. We are no lawyers but we find some of his arguments sensible and we asked ourselves where The Dalai Lama was when his own MPs joined the others in passing that bill. We are very sorry sir, but who were you really talking to on that morning? We are ordinary people and we don’t know the law, some of us don’t even know parliamentary procedure and we live hundreds of miles away from where the parliament sits. We elected people from your party to represent us in parliament. Are you now telling us they have failed? So would you expect us to vote for people from your party in November?
The incontrovertible truth behind that interview is this: As usual, beleaguered The Dalai Lama was merely looking for a way to capture the initiative wrestled from him so far by his own boys and to demonstrate his knowledge of the law on radio.
We would have been happy to hear your MPs make such arguments during the debate on the bill. Somebody has just called our attention to the fact that you have no control over your MPs and that they now answer to the SUNSHINE party. Sorry sir, but why are you pretending to be in charge?
AWARDING PARTY SYMBOLS – HOW DEMOCRATIC?
Christiana says nominations will take place in September and by that time we will be clear who the candidates are from all parties. Well let’s hope all parties will be able to fill candidates because the PMDC and the NDA still can’t hold party conventions because of legal reasons and lack of cash respectively. We must say however that if any of these parties interfere with the democratic process in terms of selecting candidates, we will end up with a lot of Independent candidates and NEC must prepare for them. The people’s choices will have to be respected this time over that of Marine House and Wallace Johnson street. Some Independents will definitely enter parliament this year.
PMDC Newspaper – The Most High, the Very Reverend Dr. DENNIS SANDY
The Weekly edition of Positive Change was out last week and it was interesting to read what The Dalai Lama’s party was saying about national issues. In particular there was an article from sacked social welfare minister Dennis Sandy (Phd.) titled The March Towards a “New Paradigm for Sierra Leone’s Development – The paradigm of “Newness.” What? Anyway in truly academic fashion, we quote:
“Talk to anybody about the causes of our underdevelopment and the common usual responses will follow, mismanagement of the country’s natural resources, corruption, no strong sense of unity manifested by the strong degree of tribalism, nepotism, sycophancy...the blames lies squarely on ...the APC and SLPP. For 51 years, we really have nothing serious and sustainable to point at in terms of development...there is no sector in the economy in which a pass mark of at least 50% should be given in terms of welfare improvement of the people. Agriculture 21%, Health 16%, Clean water supply 12%, Good roads 23%, education 24% Electricity 22%.”
ONE WEEK IS A LONG TIME IN POLITICS. DENNIS SANDY (Phd.) LEGO WE BO!
