News Story

FREETOWN: DR SAMA BANYA: The general outcry among the people of Sierra leone today, especially among President Ernest Bai Koroma's supporters who helped to get him into State House either by "immatt" "celtel" Christiana Thorpe, is that the hardship is getting worse by the day, if not by the hour. As I said before and as I will continue to say until I see signs that the goverrnment is getting to grips with its current dilema, all we hear is that the APC government is well aware of the economic hardshipis facing the people and is taking steps to address them. And all the time the people cry aloud that this was not what they voted for.

If it is any comfort to HE, some of his stunchest supporters are coming up with solutions which they believe will get us through the storm, once the boss and his team have the political will to carry them out. One such advice comes from J B Roy, a regular columnist of the African Champion newspaper. This man never saw anything good that the SLPP government did to move our country forward. Now that his patron is faced with the current dilema, J B Roy is advising the President in the pages of the African champion, "to go down on his knees and beg the World Bank, the IMF, international donors and financial agencies to give a massive boost to our agriculture and mining industries in order to tremendously increase their productivity." Yes, and how will the this government set about this, when for political reasons, it drives out Koidu Holdings as one would deal with a stray dog. The massive funds will come in all right you bet!!.

In the same article, J B Roy quotes the views of a diplomat which was shared with him in confidence. "That the international financial community is feeling reluctant to open its hands towards the government is because they are not satisfied with the regional composition of the cabinet which they consider to be too northern."Regarding the equitable distribution of power," he went on, "one Western diplomat speaking on condition of anonymity told the African Champion that they are not impressed with the output of the cabinet. One area they raised concern about is the frequency of overseas trips by government funtionaries and the amount of per diem they collect, which they insist is too extravagant for a country going through hard times. Our diplomat source said 'it cannot be business as usual;' they wou;d like to see the government putting strong lid on what he called 'unnecessary budgetary expenditure.'"

The above was neither from J J Siaffa, nor Bernadette Lahai, Puawui nor more recently from the editor of the New Vision newspaper. They have come from a source (The African Champion newspaper) whose Managing editor like his chief columnist J B Roy, had blindly applauded everything the APC did. So then what is all the howling about from the State House Press Secretary? As the New Vision stated recently, there is nothing that government's do these days which remain shrouded in secrecy. Mr. President, with the kind of friends, supporters and former praise singers now raising their heads, aye, and their voices too, do you need an opposition Party?

In under nine months in power our government is rapidly squandering all its goodwill and gaining notoriety for saying one thing and doing exactly the opposite. There is its current plan to depose a number of Paramount Chiefs who were perceived to be supporters of the previous SLPP government. More on the surreptitious approach to this plan in the next edition.