News Story

FREETOWN: NEW PEOPLE CORRESPONDENT: Impeccable State House sources state that the APC government is undeterred in its determination to bribe voters with rice although they fully know that once they bribe voters with the rice before Local Government elections in July, the rice situation will get even worse immediately after the elections with prices set to rise officially to Le160,000 from the current Le120,000. The situation has caused controvery with Alpha Kanu and All Peoples Party (APC) scribe Victor Foh determined to pursue the rice scam and Information Minister, I.B. Kargbo warning that this ruse may anger citizens and lead to possible backlash and unrest if people realise after the local government elections that the rice was just a bribe to get votes.

At a meeting held at Goderich, the decision was howerver made that because of the current hardship in the country and the latest anger over the allocation of symbols, the only hope for the APC in the local government elections is to use rice to bribe voters. At the meeting, members of the central committee agreed that the APC government will import 2,000 tonnes of rice from India. This is because the recent approach to Vietnam and Thailand were turned down because both governmens have decided on a temporary freeze on all rice exports due to the supply situation and the crisis of rising prices.

The two shiploads of rice are slated to arrive in two shiploads. According to the plan revealed to New People sources, Victor Foh, the party secretary general, is said to have put together a plan which involves distributing the imported rice among the local government candidates or their appointed agents. Those agents would then distribute the rice for sale at low prices in the local constituencies with the message that the APC government had at last resolved the rice supply situation. This, Victor Foh argues, would get people to vote for them at least during the local government elections.

The New People contacted a number of people in some key battleground constituencies. The prevailing view among people is "Wi go eat di rehs en vote we vote." This view is being maintained by the majority of people who are tired of what they referred to as APC talk-talk and the worsening situation in the country.