Dr. Sama Banya (Puawui)
6 April 2012
Within the last fortnight the government of President Ernest Bai Koroma appears to be groping in the dark. Never in the history of politics has a government been known to be so inconsistent and contradictory as this administration has demonstrated.
It has completely lost its way and even as it speaks with many voices, its present difficulty is only being compounded.
Take the latest utterance of the minister of information and communication Ibrahim Ben Kargbo in his interview with the BBC’s Hassan Arouni in the Thursday April 5th edition of ‘Focus on Africa.’
He says when they found out that the arms and ammunition imported for the police contained some heavy weaponry they consulted experts who advised them to pass over those heavy equipment to the military to be used in peace mission operations. That’s like “shutting the stable gates after the horses have bolted.”
Both IMATT and the UN were here. If this government’s intention was to routinely equip the police, why did they not seek advice from either body?
The more different spokesmen try to explain the unexplainable, the more muddied the whole sordid episode gets. These people brought in those weapons stealthily and would have turned them on us on or before November 17.
And some ignorant hypocrite queries the SLPP Presidential candidate Retired Brigadier Julius Maada Bio for taking the matter directly to the President instead of passing it through opposition Members of Parliament.
The next person who made a lamentable exhibition of himself was J B Dauda the minister of Foreign Affairs and International cooperation before the United Nations.
Like I B Kargbo, Jam Body made a conspicuously futile effort to challenge or refute the submission of the U N Secretary-General’s Executive Representative to Sierra Leone Michael Schulengerg.
His naked lie was still echoing in the ears of the diplomatic community who already knew he was lying before his own government reluctantly came out with an acknowledgment that indeed arms had been ordered for routinely equipping the police.
But, on discovering that some were not suitable for routine police operation, “a technical committee was set up which recommended that some of the arms should be handed over to the military.” It has been said that to lie to others, in this case its own people, is dishonest, but that to lie to oneself is unhealthy.
In all of this the deputy information minister Sheka Tarawalli and the Internal Affairs minister as well as the inspector-general of police Francis Munu have all spoken with tongues in cheek.
Musa Tarawalli was at least honest and forthright. He acknowledged that the arms were brought in to deal with coup makers who were now leading the opposition SLPP. Does the President not feel embarrassed by still retaining this man in his cabinet?
As I have indicated the whole thing is an exercise in contradiction by a government that has lost its way.
A government of denial after denial of known facts, like the time they bungled when they smuggled Mohamed Bangura into the United Nations General Assembly. They continued to distant themselves from how he got in until a document was revealed which caught them with their pants down.
Once again the question arises, was the same Mohamed Bangura a member of our President’s delegation to the inauguration ceremony of President Sall of Senegal? If so is the leader of the UDM party the mascot of the APC or its agent provocateur?
This government has lost focus and direction. Road construction may be in progress; there is free healthcare delivery to women and children; there are the pa’s eyes and ears everywhere; the Lokos may have declared support and the pa has acknowledged that he is a Loko; there may have been a million man traders masquerade and money is thrown around as a farmer scatters seed rice for ploughing.
There is an impressive corps of journalists, with most of them bought over with raw cash, which continues to croon, that there will be no Presidential runoff.
All of the above, including our flagship slogan the Agenda For Change, all notwithstanding the APC has to resort to these yuki yuki games.
Is it a party that deserves the confidence and trust of this nation? By the reception that Maada Bio and Kadi Sesey are now getting wherever they go and disasters like the failed Tom Nyuma triumphant re-entry into Kailahun, the answer must be obvious.
Our people must change course and follow the “NEW DIRECTION” that is being mapped out by Maada and Kadi.
This is the reason why all these politician should give way to the young leaders. We need people that can really uphold the constitution – politicians that have the country in mind not their pockets.
If the present government is doing the right thing to prosper the country, then it would not be this insecure to purchase arms.
We need people to stand up against these thieves that call themselves our leaders. I mean every politician – regardless of political affiliation. I thank you
Excellent writing! Keep it up pa Greyhair!