As the nation was nervously waiting on the National Electoral Commissioner N’fa Alie Conteh to announce the winner in the presidential runoff, so the apprehension extended to critically asses the score sheet of the Bio led government with reference to the hundred days in governance. This is necessary to determine progress or retrogression on the basis of objectively verifiable indicators especially, in the wake of transition to a new political regime with the baptismal name, New Direction.
The nothingness of the New Direction is now the echo in every nook and cranny of the Sierra Leonean society. Expectation that economic prophets were inclusive in the much trumpeted New Direction that will bring into fruition prophesies; that the nation will be the New Jerusalem, where no more weeping and gnashing of teeth, hunger and starvation, assurance of twenty four hours clean electricity supply, no more dying etc. But alas! They are all flight of the imagination. Seemingly, the New Direction is nothing but a gate way to socio-economic hardship. Everything is strange in the New Direction with price hike everywhere, denting the economy, smearing the way to economic misery for those that cannot access the national cake.
The theorists of the New Direction in their novel course pinned concentration more on idealism with little or no interest in the realism to address real life situation enveloping the nation. The failure of the New Direction is scaled on the affinity for selective justice, hatred, viciousness, disrespect for constitutionality, human rights violations, political malice, fallacious concoctions, intimidation of officials in the past regime with intent to damage their credibility and many more contemptible.
In summary, it is viewed by many as an attempt to defame the opposition APC in the eagerness to score cheap political mark especially, in the use of the “evil” transitional selected report to probe and criminalize officials of the past regime. How independent was the transition team, and were there no malice aforethought expressed or implied in the course of stock taking?
Numerous factual errors were detected as a ploy to nail People of reputable character in the attempt to please the “Eze Olu” of Mama Salone and to distract attention on the contemporary economic misery. This is the current topical debate making the rounds in every school of deliberation. A stratagem to make up for failure in the first one hundred days! The SLPP’s political miscalculation is masqueraded intimidations to conceal failure, and the inability to provide good leadership. It could also be perceived as an endeavor of the SLPP to metamorphous into political slapstick, reiterated an aged political commentator.
The one hundred days is much more of a focus on witch hunt with the intension to distract attention on the inexcusable situation the Bio led government has drag this nation to. Much was expected from the billowed New Direction to change the political landscape by providing cogent leadership to address the appalling situation that is continually eating every fabric of economic growth, subjecting the people to abject poverty.
The first hundred days of the SLPP should have been a litmus test of the socio-economic potency in New Direction to wash out the Agenda for Prosperity. To the greatest dismay, there is nothing new of socio-economic interest in the New Direction, but continuity of the well tailored Agenda for Prosperity (AfP) left as legacy by the then APC government of Ernest Bai Koroma.
No way in divorcing the AfP from the face of development, it is a necessary tool addressing every aspect of the nation’s economic development. The New Direction is zilch and a probable incarnation of the AfP; a parrot brand of intentions lacking actions for sustainable socio-economic growth, full of bootlegging by brazen political maharishis of the almighty SLPP in admiration of the APC’s economic encyclopedia.
The said New Direction is built on the foundation of intentions devoid of verifiable indicators both at quantitative and qualitative perceptive to gauge positive economic growth. Within the hundred days, the New Direction seemingly is an elevation of poverty. There is nothing of practical sense to alleviate poverty taking into consideration the number of sackings, price hikes of essential commodities and violations of human rights that have visited this nation within the hundred days of governance switch.
The first hundred days of the Bio Led SLPP government has been the failure to provide sustainable electricity and good leadership. The shout, “Kerosene-day!” began catching the wind once more to announce power cut, which have left the ruling SLPP government with no alternative but to continue with the then Ernest Bai Koroma’s government negotiation to engage the Turkish power-ship to supply electricity in Freetown and its environ.
Mercy! Is it continuation of the Koroma’s legacy to supplement or to invalidate the Bio’s New Direction? One philosopher is quoted to have said, “If you cannot beat the man, then join him.” By implication, it seems the Agenda for Prosperity has been validated by the ruling SLPP as the socio-economic encyclopedia for national development. The issues, principles and values of which the society considers important are equally and fully incorporated in the said agenda and are well articulated. It is apparently a reference material for socio-economic development, and which without prejudice will be very useful to the Bio led SLPP administration if it were to be ranked squarely with Ernest Koroma’s regime.
Initially, The SLPP condemned the inherited negotiation with the Turkish power- Ship. Mounted pressure from the people forcefully dragged them into negotiation to provide the city with electricity. Meaning, “The stone the builder refused has become the head cornerstone.” It’s a pity to see the resuscitation of the asphyxiated New Direction with oxygenated blood from the Koroma’s APC legacy in order to fulfill political promises made!
When would the New Direction take us to the promise Land, full of milk and honey, where power cut is no more and with abundance of water? Lord have mercy! Christ have mercy! Basic necessities of life are never addressed to the satisfaction of the people, yet another promise to give free-education with school feeding in the midst of economic depression. Well, let wait and see! Maybe the New Direction has economic magicians to solve the socio-economic disequilibrium in the growth and development of our deprived nation. And perhaps the New Direction would create a special market to buy and sell condiments for the school feeding programme.
“Marade wae get for sweet kin show pan d bachelor’s eve.”(A sustainable marriage is spotted at the bachelor’s eve). But ay ya! The one hundred days is a complete diversion from the development trajectory under the Agenda for Prosperity which has now been metamorphosed into retrogression, a downward trend in every sphere of socio-economic life. Is the New Direction an innovative political concept called, Biocracy, emerging in the wake of a new political dispensation? It is highly speculated that Biocracy is a disguise form of despotism, enclosed in the sheet of executive orders or decrees. The Bio-nor-mix and the Bio-don-mix is equal to total failure in the hundred days governance assessment!
Key supporters of the Bio led government are everywhere with browbeats, hopelessness, fabricated lies and malicious propaganda to win public sympathy in the midst of economic breakdown as a result of bad governance within the assessed one hundred days of the SLPP in governance.
Discriminate sackings and unwarranted replacements have been the camouflage to sway away attention from public criticisms. Ay Salone! Only divine intervention that can save this nation from economic collapse! All tin don pwell! Wu-sai the new direction dae kerr we, na God wan know. With all the purported Adam Smiths, the J.C Pigous, the Lionel Robbins in the New Direction is just another failure. Where are the J.J Saffas and others who were out there, telling the nation that they are the solution to the appalling economic morass? Are they now the “Cold- pap economists”, leaving the nation to sink in the ocean of regret?
