10 November, 2008

Press Secretariat, State House

OGI Port Loko: President Koroma still trusts Kemoh Sesay

President Ernest Bai Koroma has told the people of Port Loko that unless the police prove otherwise and charge suspended Minister of Transport & Aviation Kemoh Sesay (a descendant and former MP of the township), he still has trust in the man he has worked with for a very long time.

The President made the remarks during an Open Government Initiative (OGI)-organized ‘talking to the people’ meeting at the Port Loko conference hall last Saturday 08 November 2008 in response to questions from the people about the embattled minister’s circumstances.

“I know Kemoh Sesay’s issue is of concern to most of you and I understand why…I made the decision to appoint him as minister because I know his capabilities. No one forced me to, no one asked me to. But if anything happens when he is serving and had to be required to go and help the police, as a matter of policy anyone reaching that point has to be relieved until the matter is resolved… I have confidence in Kemoh Sesay, and I believe he is a politician with a future in this country. But I appointed him, and even if there were no case of this nature, if he does not perform, I have the prerogative to remove him… Very soon the police will charge those that have a case to answer. I therefore ask you to keep your fingers crossed. But no one will force me to do anything. The simple answer is, up to this moment, I have trust in Kemoh Sesay,” the President said amid cheers from the audience.

Before the question-and-answer session, the President had delivered a keynote speech on the government’s general agenda with reference to the development of Port Loko. The Head of State reiterated his government’s commitment to good governance, as manifested in the open government initiative of going to all districts, speaking to the people and also getting feedbacks from them. He made mention of government’s priorities as energy, infrastructure and agriculture, which, if successfully implemented, are capable of moving with the other areas, especially education, health, and the economy in general. He said the people have obviously started seeing the results of government’s efforts, particularly in the energy sector in Freetown, and that soon they would see more tangible results. He revealed that the rural electrification pilot programme will start in Port Loko at the Bankasoka River. “The Government of Sierra Leone, UNIDO and the Chinese have signed the agreement, and the programme will be launched on 7^th January 2009... And I assure you that it will not take long like Bumbuna, but will be completed within a year.” The Head of State also touched on plans to reconstruct the Rogbere-Kambia and Port Loko-Lungi roads, sponsored by the EU and the ADB respectively. “When that is done, certainly Port Loko will find itself at the centre of activities,” he declared, stating that even the roads within district headquarter towns would be modernised.

On the agricultural sector, the President said he had re-arranged his priorities on World Food Day to make agriculture his new number one priority. He said some persons had wanted to politicize the global food and fuel crisis that hit his government during its early days, but that the people understood the circumstances. “The days when politicians lie to the people are over. Now the layman understands; if not we would not be here... We are here with a programme, and no one will distract us.”

The President said agriculture will remain the number one priority until Sierra Leone would be able to feed herself. “In the next two to three years, if we cannot feed ourselves, we would rather starve, but we would stop importing rice.” The President said agricultural productivity should go beyond rice cultivation to include cash crops and animal husbandry. “There’s a lot of agricultural potential, and I believe in future agriculture will be of greater benefit to Sierra Leone than mining. This would not only reduce poverty but will increase our export base.” The President spoke about the new international confidence the country is gaining and how it is safer and more secure than before. He ended by saying no one else will build Sierra Leone except Sierra Leoneans themselves. “Let’s get out of this complacency, let’s take up the responsibility to build this nation and in the process we’ll make Sierra Leone benefit from what Sierra Leone has,” he concluded.

During the question-and-answer session, not only the President, but cabinet ministers answered to various questions ranging from education through health to information dissemination. The ceremony was chaired by Minister of Presidential & Public Affairs Alpha Kanu who directly supervises the Open Government Initiative.

Earlier in the morning of the same Saturday, the President and entourage addressed students of Port Loko Teachers College (PLTC) at their campus with a focus on the education of the girl child. Here, the President said if we are to be fair to ourselves, we would admit that education is in a deep crisis. “This college was started over 40 years ago, and the focus was the development of the girl child, that was why it was originally called the Port Loko Girls College. But what have we achieved as a college, as a town, as a country after 40 years? Just look at the statistics of girls in institutions of higher learning.”

The President repeated his statement that education is the polishing industry for young people to acquire jobs and skills that will give Sierra Leone a future to be proud of. He delved into history to say the country has a good inheritance of having been the centre of educational activities for not only West Africans but even for people from as far as central and east Africa, which was why Sierra Leone was called the ‘Athens of West Africa.’ “But much has gone wrong along the way. We now need to reverse the trend and restore the glory of this nation.” The President said it’s a great challenge, but is achievable if all Sierra Leoneans work together. He said there should be greater focus in developing our human resource, while lamenting on the great difficulty of girls going through the educational stages from primary through secondary school to tertiary level.

The President said he is determined to see education greatly supported that’s why 10% of the budget is devoted to that sector, but regrettably noted that 60% of that was being wasted on ‘ghosts’. “If we close these loopholes, we’ll be able to improve the standards, pay better salaries, and equip the educational institutions more.” The President unequivocally stated his support for the efforts of the Minister of Education to restructure and revitalize the education sector. “To strengthen and carry out our commitment and beliefs, we have taken this drive to verify schools. It will go on, and it is unstoppable. We give our full support to the Minister of Education. He is not alone; he has my personal support.” The President said a review of the current 6-3-3-4 system of education is ongoing, declaring his unhappiness with the recent West African Secondary School Exams (WASSCE) results, for which a commission of enquiry has been set up to come up with recommendations and a new policy direction.

President Koroma appealed to education authorities, parents, teachers, as well as students, to avoid uncouth methods of allowing students to be promoted without the required pass marks. He particularly told students that they could only be leaders of tomorrow when they prepare themselves today. “Don’t compete on who has the best hairstyle or the best dress; but compete on who has the best result,” he said, giving a clear warning that his government would soon ban all occult groups in educational institutions. “We are ready to go into running battles with them, but we must instill discipline in this country.” He revealed his government’s new package of incentives for girls in order to encourage them to pursue education to tertiary level, explaining that many outstanding female students would be given scholarships to study abroad. He also indicated that government would soon come up with new regulations for students, which must be adhered to. He said education is the only insurance Sierra Leoneans have for the future. “At this moment, let us think deeply and know that education should be the future of our children, education should be the future of Port Loko, education should be the future of Sierra Leone.”

The Principal of PLTC Ibrahim Bangura welcomed the President and entourage, while Minister of Education Minkhailu Bah spoke on his ongoing efforts to improve the educational sector, with a view to encouraging the girl child in collaboration with UNICEF. He said any girl that studies Science at tertiary level automatically gets a government grant. The occasion was chaired by Minister of Information & Communications I.B. Kargbo.

President Koroma also visited a farm at Rothun village where 380 acres were under rice cultivation but has a potential of over 5000 cultivable land. The President and entourage returned to Freetown on the same day, while he attended the annual Remembrance Day Service for fallen soldiers and survivors of the First and Second World Wars, together with the Rebel War, at the Cenotaph, Secretariat Building, George Street in Freetown yesterday.

This morning, the President had an extraordinary cabinet meeting.

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