4 March, 2008

A concerned Sierra Express  reader, Freetown

Letter to the President

His Excellency Sir,

I am not as pleased as I am used to being when I wrote you previous letters. I am worried and disturbed about the stability of the country. I am disturbed because I don't want to even think about the bad situation that took place in Bo. That was a case that may return this country to those nasty days of war.

I am a citizen of Bo. I know my people and I know how they can react to suppressive situations. Sir, I will want you to consult with your Minister of Information to tell you about the people of Bo. That ugly incident in Bo is a case that will affect you in the long term in your political life. Bo is a political town and the people there are very conscious of their rights.

First of all, I want to ask the reason for that kind of attack on the SLPP office in Bo. Musa Tarawally and the Police told the people of this country that some people (unknown) defaced your picture that was placed at the clock tower. Both of them said that this made some youths react by vandalizing and looting the SLPP office. Musa Tarawally went on to say that it were ten thousand youth that were involved in the vandalism. Musa, on talking to me personally via phone, gave me the name of the ring leader of the rioters. He and F.U.K. Dabo; the LUC Bo Police station agreed that the youth looted the SLPP office.

Sir, I asked Musa about the arrests that were made, he told me it was only the SLPP members that have been arrested. Why should that happen in this country? I wonder how the Public Order At is working now? I was expecting that these youths would be arrested also for at least riotous conduct.  This action in Bo has made me dispirited and disheartened. I am not able to sleep properly. I am hitting my head against the wall in annoyance when I heard the news.

I am not annoyed because I am from Bo, but I am foreseeing awkward response from the people of Bo. This response can be now or it can take place after five (5) years. I tell you Sir, Bo people are historians. They are very good at keeping records of events. I assure you Sir, some people are even having video clips of the event and they are ready to keep it as long as they could.

A very prominent politician told me that it is history that is repeating itself. He told me that this same kind of thing did happen in 1967 when the APC came to power. He said that after APC had won the 1967 elections, they (I am saying "they" because you were not involved) resorted to eliminating strong SLPP supporters. That was when Mafanta became popular. I am not imagining that you are encouraging those kinds of things to reoccur. I believe you know that there is no space for such kind of politics again in Sierra Leone. Modern politics does not allow thuggery, marginalization and elimination. There is no way for that to happen here in Sierra Leone. What Musa is doing in Bo will bring instability in that region and that will spill over the whole country.

What I want you to do right now is for you to come out with a strongly worded statement that condemns the Bo riot. This may try to dent your political career if you allow it to be swept under the red carpet of State House. You must stand up now on your own and disassociate yourself from that nasty act of people. I don't want you to listen to what Hon. Alpha Khan is saying on the radio. I want you to do it yourself. I always say that you are a clean politician, don't allow people to soil it. This type of politics is not for you. I assure you sir, if you do your politics in line with clean attitudes, you can stand on your own and win elections. I mean with or without a political party you can be elected as the president when the constitution allows it. As somebody rightly said in one of the tabloids, your surroundings are fooling you, Sir. They did the same thing to Pa Kabbah. They fooled him and did not advise him on the things that are happening on the ground.

Your Excellency, this country is waiting for you to reform it, not the kind violence we are seeing now. Those rowdy youngsters must not be allowed to continue their mission of violence. Sir, I entirely agree that you will want your party to make inroads in the South and East but not in these kinds of controversial moves. Detailing youths to inflict excruciating pain on electorate should not be tolerated. The incident in Bo is a clear manifestation of somebody's backwardness in modern day politics. Sir, you have been given the option to either make your mark in this country or be like past leaders that are booed wherever they pass. Sir, I want you to start showing reluctance to some things that are destroying your personality. This time you must say something to those that are perpetrating violence. You should even relieve some from their jobs. You should do that to stop this latest version of violence. The Bo incident has become outstanding in international arena and that will provoke donors to withhold their monies for the development of the country. At this time, your attention should be directed to the difficult life Sierra Leoneans are living not the erection of your portraits in city's that are dominated by the opposition. Let no little minded person drag you into such things. Development should be the chief guide to your governance. By now you should be creating new economic initiatives that will bring the country to its proper footing. I thought you would advise your government officials, including ministers, to develop ways the country will be improved economically not the type of organized violence that is being done in Bo. Stop! Stop! Stop!! It's now, Mr. President, to imagine the kind of harm that is inflicted in your people of that part of the country.

Please Sir, remove these violent crusaders and invaders from your midst. They are not worthy to live with the likes of you. You are the president of this country now, those that want to make silly moves to tarnish that position must be seen as detractors and enemies to your success. In this country, you can not achieve anything more than being president, so, what you should be looking at is to make the difference. For this reason you should stop this series of organized violence and diffuse it once and for all.

Look at Zimbabwe, even though the West is campaigning to remove Mugabe from power, they are finding it very difficult because the people of Zimbabwe are still thinking that Mugabe has contributed to the change of their lives. They are still clinging to Mugabe's Presidency. Some are even arguing that Mugabe has contributed immensely to the land reform. That Mugabe has built 14 Universities in the country, which electricity has been brought to rural area, which at every five miles radius there is a school and so on. There is a pressure from the West which has led to inflation and suffering of the Zimbabwean, but the people endures it just to support their president. I think those are the kind of things you should be seen doing. Things that the people will one day stand by you when you need them.

Please take knowledge of what is happening with former leaders. I want you to please know that, the things that you do to former leaders now may happen to you when you leave power. I am talking about the thing that happened at the Lungi International airport with former Vice President, Solomon Berewa. Workers or security officers, especially the police refused the former Vice President access to the presidential lounge. The reason for doing that was to humiliate Solo B. What does it mean if the man that was running this country is given access to the place he is used to? What will it pay to humiliate him by not giving him access to the presidential lounge?  These are trivial things that must not take any political attention. Solo B can be humiliated now but that goes on record for others to have revenge. It will continue like that. I think it is time for us to copy the Nigerian pattern of respecting past leaders. In that country, they have almost the same respect they have when they were in power. It is only this country that we see former leaders like common people. I think you must put an end to that now and start building your own respect when you leave. Please know that two terms of office (ten years) is the longest time you may serve as president. Those ten years are now reduced by some months; so it will happen until it reaches the end.

Before that day comes, it is you that will have to create the atmosphere of respect for yourself. Those that may be pushing you to do things that are bizarre, have not and may never reached the position you have held. Maybe some of them are secretly envious of your success and are making a long term plan to see you below where they are right now. Please Sir, take my advice into consideration and build upon the good things Pa Kabbah has left..

PEACE

Yours sincerely

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