Listening to the BBC’s Umaru Fofanah Thursday July 10, 2008 on the President’s presumptive move to ‘offload’ some members of the cabinet whom he thinks are excess baggage’s and in his words "to stabilize the vessel," I could not help but chuckle. In the deeper bottom of my heart, I have known (just like many more) all along that the caliber of men and
women the President has appointed and continues to draft actualize his vision was designed to fumble, and not deliver the goodies many were hoping a regime change will provide.

One needs only to look at this administration’s entrenched partisanship, and regional pandering to get a gist of why things are happening the way it is, and not the way it should, and it’s disappointing to say the least.

Drug Scandal and Poverty
Alvin Hilaire - the IMF Representative recently spoke at a news conference and said that "The situation in Sierra Leone is serious; the country faces a number of social and economic difficulties. Although you have growth of about 6.9% over the last three years Sierra Leone still ranked unfortunately at the bottom of the human development index." For these reasons and many more, we as a nation cannot afford to fold our hands, and not say or be seen to do nothing, hoping that things will get better when 78% of our compatriots are languishing in poverty, with a bag of rice now selling at LE 130,000 and upwards, completely out of reach of many average family, or when drug lords have taken over the country giving us a bad image.

No, we cannot be silent. This is not about being partisan. It has everything to do with our country that we love dearly. And one begs to differ with the Foreign Minister who said that we should be applauded for having apprehended a plane load of 700 kilogram cocaine. The Minister is completely out of touch with world realities on the issue of narcotics trafficking to be saying those words. Where is the applause line when top governments officials are now being named in the ongoing drug investigation?

Whoever thinks this is a one time episode must be joking. Media reports have now shown that this drug practice has been going on, and that Port Loko is now being used by drug peddlers as a hub and distribution center for the rest of the region and Europe. Instead of being applauded Mrs. Foreign Minister, your government should be embarrassed, just like we are.

Attitudinal Change
By the way, there is this constant excuse one hears from folks that the country is difficult to manage when it comes to attitudinal change. It is a tough call to change an aging mind-set that has been twisted for decades running; from the common man or woman who walks down the streets and throws dirt’s or ‘pee’ all over the place, to the petty trader who has taken over the main streets selling wares, and leaves the refuse unattended at the end of the day, to the traffic cop taken bribes from unruly, unauthorized and uninsured drivers who have committed a traffic violation of one sort or the other.

This is true of our teachers teaching from a must buy pamphlet or rescheduling class work for private lessons, to the students who cheats to get the grades instead of studying hard. And can relate to these frustrations as the realities speak for themselves, when there is a justice system that is broken and tilted to the privileged few, propped by a civil service that is tapered bureaucratic and adeptly perceived corrupt. If you throw in a media that remains split between the real journalists and those who are in for the quick fix, then the whole attitudinal change slogan becomes a toss up. One sees the societal collapse witnessed today as self-inflicted, allowed thriving for decades without doing much about it. Bold leadership is needed to stop the bleeding.

Our leaders both past and present have not shown the political will to deliver the knockout punch. Our nation will only move forward from the rot we find ourselves when there is a true disciplinarian and humanitarian at state house. This country is hungry for a leader who will stand up for what he or she believes in, fighting for the poor, ensuring there is fairness and wealth distribution across the board. We are in need of a leader who can feel the pain of the least one of us. Just like Mandela invoked on his 90th birthday bash, it is time for the rich to give up some of their wealth to the poor. The President’s call for attitudinal change should in fact begin from now, filter down to his ministers, aides and associates, for the message to sink home that it is for real, and means.

President Koroma upon assumption of office was categorical on his application of zero tolerance across the board, without any sacrificial lamb, not even a family member. Not many though are impressed with these gains as was demonstrated in the just concluded local elections with only 38 percent showing off to the polls. People are disenchanted, battling to face-off with the harsh economic realities taken a toll on them. Do not expect folks at the receiving end, the police man, or driver, teacher or civil servant earning such a paltry sum that is hardly paid on time, and who can barely scrape through to make ends meet, adopt verbatim this transformative change when the political elites walk tall, in comfort, and living lavish lifestyle with reckless abandon.

Corruption
Did the President not say he is strongly opposed to corruption? Why is he sitting tight whilst a good number of his ministers and aides have had their names allegedly defaced in acts of impropriety without any reprimand? Yes, there is some improvements in power supply in Freetown and the Energy Minister should take some credit. But that’s not the point at all. What matters here is the process management. Were laid down procurement laws flouted in complete disregard in the award of the contract? Was there any conflict of interest, or some form of financial remuneration that triggered some form of bias for one company over the other?

These are the hard questions that must be asked by the ACC to foreclose this bad rap involving USD 30 Million.

In March of 2008, World Bank drug contract brouhaha brewed allegedly finger-pointing the administration’s PRO henchman – Hon Alpha Kanu. The revelations surrounding some USD$ 2-4 Million drug supply became a media circus, as the PRO and the Health Minister exchanged some verbal swipes at one another, prompting the Minister to threaten resignation if push comes to shove. He has since back down from that threat. Time and again, haven’t we read, or heard about the VP’s name being associated with one business transaction or the other, from timber exploitation to diamonds, and real estate here in the US. All of these insinuations it appears have fallen on dear ears, for we have not seen the ACC weigh in on these serious allegations.

It took the Kenya’s Finance Minister Amos Kimunya a week of protest and vote of no-confidence in parliament to step down on Tuesday July 8, 2008, due to his mis-handling of the sale of a government-owned hotel luxury Grand Regency to a Libyan government. No amount of PR could spin the perception that the minister’s under-cover transaction was ethical. The good thing about it all is that he has since resigned.

How disgusting is it learning of the recent drug controversy unfolding before our very eyes. A perfect opportunity is now being presented to President Koroma to act justifiably, and vindicate himself that he is tough on corruption. Anything other than that will give a different interpretation. Nobody knows for sure when the new Anti-corruption bill will pass through the chambers of parliament, particular now that both parliament and the ACC is stuck over the independence provision to persecute culprits without any litigation from the Attorney General’s office. In fact, there shouldn't be any squabble over this, for the President has already promised a complete autonomy of the ACC. That said, civil society and pro-anti corruption groups must organize and strengthen their level of opposition to ensure that this bill passes without any glitch.

Accountability - the way forward
Now that the President has said he was going to make some re-alignment in his cabinet, the nation is waiting to see how competent his team will be this time around. Will the President go ahead to select same old failed politicians, mediocre and cronies who have been missed out in the first innings, or will he put a team competent and forthright to lead and make real difference in people’s lives? As citizens we must be seen to hold our government accountable in the way business is conducted and in the management of tax payer’s money. Public officials should be seen as hired servants paid to do a job, which they should do, or exit for more culpable hands.

Civil society and the press must continue to ask the tough questions and be seen as the mouth piece of the voiceless to ensure that business is not conducted as usual, that change must happen for the good of the country. Some of us would no longer sit by but will stay alert and demand governance accountability. What about you?