By: Ibrahim Jalloh - (Jallomy)✍️
Our beloved country Sierra Leone is going through tested and difficult times on account of several factors that can be traced to politics, the economy and the polarized nature of the state.
We should advised ourselves not to apportion or shift blame on the current state of affairs but we must appraise ourselves with the reality of what went wrong and what is going wrong. What is happening today with the economy, the politics and the overall governance dynamics of the state is a pointed trajectory of deliberate and intentional governance failures and failings in the remote and distanced past. The economy was dealt with a crushing blow and, some will say, brutally raped with speed and agonizing rapidity. Governance was narrowed to a private entity and leaders assumed the character of shareholders and all was run as a for - profit enterprise. Politics became an industry, in fact the biggest industry. The tribe and region became political theatres. Political parties took ownership of tribal people and marriages of convenience developed between tribe and political parties. It became unethical to vote for the political party of the other tribe. So political prosperity, security and well-being were defied along the lines of tribal affiliations to the political party of one's tribe. The region and regional consciousness are extension of the political party/ tribal configuration. In a condensed form, this gave birth to the concept of political tribalism.
Granted, the country is polarized along the lines of tribe, region and political party. Both sides of the political divide feel disturbed, insecure, excluded and suspicious when the other is in power.
The eleven years of brutal war and the reflective outcomes of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission speak to the chronic nature of state polarization among other National shortcomings. But today, where are we as a country after close to sixty years of self rule?
A culture of political denial and unwarranted disengagement from state governance has developed with disrobing tendencies of our civic obligations. To the main opposition party, nothing is good about the current government and one can sense intensive efforts at distracting the government machinery of state. The irony, however, is undoing the efforts of government is self destructive if you consider that governance is collective heritage. The urge for power and being in governance has collapsed the space for statesmanship and this is where the former President Koroma has fallen short of providing the role of statesmanship in addressing key national issues. The experience of eleven years in power as President is significant enough to serve as therapy to key national problems. Undesirably, former President Koroma has distanced from the normal domain of statesmanship and opted to stay active in the internal politics of his party. The political history of Sierra Leone will not remember him well for this unprecedented diversion.
To the ruling party, historic political wrongs must be redress and those bearing the greatest responsibility account for their actions or inactions. The Governance Transaction Team (GTT) was commissioned but its composition, work and report have turned the knife in the wound of the previous government. We see the unsparing efforts at politicizing the GTT and its report. We feel the internal struggles to thwart the the release of White Paper. One may be tempted to have a sense of suppressed guilt.
Ignorance has become a great platform for igniting popular demonstrations. Just few days ago, a handful of Sierra Leoneans of obvious political identity organized a massive tourism of ignorance at Burgees Park in London. Sadly, they have no message and all was a stillbirth. A Black Monday was extended to Sierra Leone and today is Black Monday but black is invisible. Back home we are learning not to be distracted. We are learning not to be misused by Political actors for their selfish desires. We know we are painfully repairing the damages of the past. When nobody hearken to the call for Black Monday, the lesson is clear! We have graduated from political remote control.
We note the efforts and attendant results of the current government in many fronts: managing an ailing economy, revamping the human resource capital, stemming the tide of corruption, combating chronic abuse of vulnerable groups like the girl child, sustainably fighting COVID-19, regular remuneration of the national workforce and the national hope of a better tomorrow.
We look forward to a viable opposition. An opposition outfit that will seek to ginger the government to action and not to undo visible efforts and results of government.
The fall of the spirit of Nationalism is obvious. The deepening political divide is glaring. The polarization of the state is extremely biting. What we need is a national dialogue that will define the roadmap for a better Sierra Leone. The spirit of the Bintumani 3 is still hovering and it is foundational for the next steps.
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