John Leigh: Sierra Leone Telegraph: 11 May 2025:
Consider the case of the late President Momoh. He succeeded President Stevens during the late 1980s. After the spending boondoggle of the Stevens OAU Conference in Freetown, President Momoh did not see the need to control the deep corruption culture Stevens left behind.
In fact, he continued it full steam. He is said to have continued the practice of allocating limited foreign exchange balances favourably to his APC friends and bribe-giving others, rather than share that scarce key resource with the tax-paying corporations.
When the import debts owed to their overseas suppliers became unmanageable, each and every one of those European, American and Canadian corporations quietly shut down; retrenched their Sierra Leone employees and departed our country.
Today, those same corporations are flourishing in Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Guinea and the Gambia employing thousands of college graduates.
Meanwhile, the unemployment and poverty which those departures cost Sierra Leone are still with us today.
Filling in the vacuum left behind were traders who prefer to pay bribes rather than pay legitimate taxes.
The public was silent throughout that saga; afraid to speak out for fear of unjust punishments!
In short order, Momoh’s government became insolvent — lacking sufficient funds to pay recurring expenses, such as salaries for already poorly-paid public servants or pay for supplies needed to generate electricity, and fuel for government vehicles, etc. pathetic!
Daily Public sector strikes soon became widespread and violent.
President Momoh then went abroad to beg for help. He could not go to Western Europe because his APC party was hostile to them or so they thought. So, he went to the Socialist nations of Eastern Europe.
In Eastern Europe, President Momoh learned that merely mouthing ‘Comrade’ did not make him a good Socialist. They blamed him for his country’s problems, and he returned home empty-handed amidst high expectations.
But the strikers soon got the bad news and they reacted with more violent strikes. It was Britain that saved the day. UK agreed to bankroll the government of Sierra Leone in exchange for having a say on the country’s governance matters. The deal also abolished the one-party system.
Presently, Bio has made the same mistake with his frivolous spending sprees. Funds have dried up. Salaries go unpaid; Electricity Distribution and Supply Agency is struggling to generate electricity. London Mining Limited sued the government of Sierra Leone and won.
Today, Koidu Holding Limited is threatening to sue Mrs. Bio for over $20 million which may end up being paid by the poor people of Sierra Leone.
Instead of looking for a sustainable solution to the country’s economic woes, President Bio chose the no-win Cocaine Option backed by lies, brutality; rigged elections; and fake photos of non-existent development projects.
Sierra Leone is surely in for more pounding as the days and months roll.
I guess Mr Leigh is itching to send someone to his once notorious doghouse in the now defunct Bintumani forum. Mr Leigh, what do you think of your favourite candidates then for the doghouse – Mohamed Kutubu Koroma and Alpha Saidu Bangura? I think they are exemplars of typical Sierra Leone flip-floppers and followers-of-the-money.
Let me put put that jest aside. I agree with most things said by you in drawing parallels between the two soldiers-cum-Presidents. Both were, however, forthright in accepting that they have failed the nation woefully and dared the people of Sierra Leone to do something about it after sizing and sussing their docility and pacifity.
Enough has already been said by me about us being drenched daily by the unstoppable spewing of bad news bout Sierra Leone. Nowadays, I try to avoid answers to questions of “where are you from” but to no avail. Everyone knows about blood diamonds and our bloody civil war. Now stolen elections, cocaine and kush linked to the 1st family, 1st lady’s property portfolio and council house fraud, rags-to-riches stories have now been added to our brand.
I am afraid even a 100 million dollar spend on PR will never undo that reputational damage if you hold a Sierra Leone passport or your Sierra Leone roots are planted in that passport.We are right in the middle of a descending inflexion point. Don’t be surprised seeing raised eyebrows, intense scrutiny of your person, bag or baggage when travelling.