By Umaru Fofana
Having looked last week at some of the president’s nominees to work in his cabinet, here we go again today. I bet we need some lessons from advance democracies. Where else does one turn to?
The United States president, Barack Obama is expected to replace a good number of his cabinet after he takes his oath of office, again, next week. Among them are those who had said that they would serve in that capacity for only term.
From “Bridge” to “Renegade”, books on Obama and his campaign that I have read clearly show that he left out of his cabinet a lot of those who shaped his political career and ran his campaign to become president.
If anything Obama chose some of those close associates to become part of his White House staff. His cabinet was made up of people whose competency and dedication to America over overrode their loyalty to or support for him. Not here, it seems.
When he was asked in an interview on Culture Radio yesterday morning as to why he thought he was appointed by the president, the nominee Minister of State, South, Muctar Conteh used the C-word. He said that he was compensated because he is a strong man in the All People’s Congress. How interesting.
This runs in the same line of a sentence as Lansana Fadika who in an interview on Radio Democracy following his defection last year from the opposition to the governing party said politics was all about THREE Rs: Risk, Recognition and Reward. He went on that God does not reward someone for their political contribution to society and they must be rewarded here on earth. He appeared to suggest financial reward. How interesting! Anyway…
Among Obama’s new team will be a member of the opposition Republican Party who will head the country’s defence department. Like Robert Gates whom Obama appointed as the 22nd US Defence Secretary, Chuck Hagel will serve a Democrat White House, even though he is a Republican, in one of the most senior positions.
The appointment is without any intention whatsoever of having Lew convert to the Democratic Party. And such is how principled they are that even if that were suggested to them they would not. And one of the quickest ways for a US president to undo himself is to suggest that. It is called civility. It is called decency.
I can understand with President Ernest Bai Koroma in many ways if it turns out that he was at pains to have quality appointees to his cabinet from the opposition heartland of the southeast to make his team wholesome and national in character. But I cannot understand at all if he says that there is no one in the opposition to appoint to his cabinet even though having a so-called Government of National Unity of political parties I abhor.
By appointing some people from the southeast just for the sake of it probably gives an idea as to why some of the names leave a lot to be desired. And could that have accounted for his delay in appointing the remaining four ministers – labour, tourism, presidential affairs, and youth and sports have not yet been announced?
I find it hard to believe that Pat Sowe survived as minister even if transferred to the Marine Resources ministry. I have been reading the performance contract signed with President Koroma going by which, he, like many others, should have been long shown the door.
I still cannot understand why despite the deaths of around 200 people in that easily avoidable boat accident around Shenge, Pat Sowe was not held responsible. Sea travel remained largely unregulated up to his transfer to the lands ministry.
If he has not shown anything as Minister of Transport and Aviation, Vandi Chidi Minah has exhibited incorruptibility. I understand that someone once went to his office to bribe him and he handed the money over to the Anti-Corruption Commission. Apparently he did not want publicity around it so it did not get reported. And I think there are many more things he can do in some other ministry. But on the whole it is good of the president to have retained him in his cabinet even if he needs to do a lot more in shoring up safety in sea travel and improving on public transport which leaves ordinary people suffering tremendously and almost with reckless abandon and neglect. I would have transferred him to the ministry of Foreign Affairs where he was badly underutilised when he served as deputy minister there.
The decision to appoint Usu Boie Kamara as trade minister and retain Minkailu Mansaray as mineral resources minister is a bit strange. Boie is a mines engineer who served as Director of Mines for many years. A great technocrat he would have been there. For reasons of technocracy and competency Boie should be in that ministry. As a man who had and I reckon still does have bigger political ambitions the trade ministry could be a poisoned chalice in view of the current eviction of traders from the streets. He should be watchful.
Minkailu Mansaray, who served as labour minister and left hardly anything, if anything, as a legacy has presided over a mines ministry that seems to be being determined by the mining companies instead of government policy and ministerial leadership. Unless his being in that ministry is for reasons other than really providing and implementing policies, then he should be transferred to another ministry – say Lands – if he must be in cabinet.
Miatta Kargbo is not a particularly know nominee in the health ministry. But she is not a medical practitioner. Unfortunately since President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah defied conventional reasoning and appointed Abbator Thomas to the health ministry, with no medical experience whatsoever, the floodgate got opened. So be careful what precedent you set.
A lot more could have been found out about Miss Kargbo if there had been enough time between nominating all the ministers and their deputies and the parliamentary committee sitting on them. So far it seems to be being rushed and hushed. Also if parliamentarians could see themselves more as representing the people than representing their parties vetting would be properly done and the best feet would be put forward. Never mind the Paramount Chief MPs.
Ministers without portfolio generally escape serious scrutiny. But the reappointment of Alie D Kamara, a childhood friend of President Koroma has disappointed even residents of Makeni where the office of the minister is situated and home of the president. During a recent visit there last week, I got told by even the most vociferous supporters of President Koroma that the appointment was a disservice to the region. Friendship, special interests, those who helped the president win and other considerations seem to have been the primordial driving forces behind appointment to cabinet positions in Sierra Leone since Adam and Eve were kids. It may not have started with the current president but a deviation was expected from him in view of how he was swept to power in 2007 and his landslide in November.
I am encouraging myself to hope that the new team will not expose the seemingly faulty judgement of the president as exhibited in his last cabinet. Remember that sacking as many ministers as did the president in the last five years simply tells one that the president’s judgement, if he did any calculated one, was flawed. Otherwise ministers are not appointed to be sacked year-in year-out. Hence they must be chosen very carefully and with only the nation at heart.
