By Kelety Alie Bockarie
The forward movement of a nation is virtually driven by visionary political heads of a state. Sierra Leone, from time immemorial, has been governed by two major political parties; the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and the All People’s Congress (APC). The highs and lows we have experienced over the past six decades were caused by these political parties. However, as a nation, there have been some positive developments in nexus to constitutional development, education, infrastructure development and some other sectors way back in the last half of the 20th century.
Very lately and to be more specific, the future of Sierra Leone started losing futuristic focus since the end of the late President Alhaji Dr Ahmed Tejan Kabbah-led governance. And the unarguable cause to the country’s staggering future is the unending impasse that exists between the APC party and the SLPP party in their leadership battle. Their tussle for political leadership and supremacy has been given much more premium over nationalistic development. All walks of life have narrowed their thinking and attitudes towards politics. The order of the day is awash and flooded with political discourses. The agenda settings of most media houses are dominated by political talks and discourses; headlines in newspapers are more of political related stories, innovation and personal development while other self-creativity pathways are given less attention as a result of the APC-SLPP leadership battle.
Almost all of the minds of Sierra Leonean nationals are forged with politicking. Even after elections are being conducted, electors are politically dissatisfied and restless due to the lack of confidence in the electoral processes in every election. This tussle for leadership or determination as to whether who wins or who loses the political battle has engaged our minds to the point that we can no longer think forward as a nation. Becoming critical and holding the ruling SLPP and government accountable for failed projects, bad policies formulation, and for blatant disregard for the rule of law are things that are utterly not in our thinking. A practical example can be drawn from the first term of the Bio-led government. The APC which is the main opposition that would have been vibrant and watchdogging so that the governing SLPP is constantly put on their toes to deliver their manifesto pledges, became very inactive in that direction and became more active and engaged in their infighting with their own party. And when the ruling SLPP and government lack vibrant and constructive opposition to checkmate its excesses, it is highly likely that the implementation of policies will become practically impossible.
Political retaliation by political leaders of the incumbent Sierra Leone Peoples Party and the All Peoples Congress party is another menace to national development of Mama Salone and this raises a doubt on the country’s future. National development is something that is connected to forward movement not backwards movement or backpedalling. If a government wants to move forward, the leader of that government must not be filled with resentment and grievance from the past. That will completely become a red herring to his forward thinking mind. He will become distracted and disengaged to national development. In fact, he will not think nationalistically because his mind is forged with a tit-for-tat kind of governance. Skill-oriented workers or professionals will be kicked out of office and substituted with stalwarts who have little or no skill in the name of sympathising with the stalwarts. And that will blatantly affect delivery.
Governance that lacks continuity always abandons uncomplicated projects left by the erstwhile government. The ruling party-government pays less attention to the process or governing the government and focuses more on their political foes. This in itself threatens the future of Sierra Leone. When the forward movement is hindered, progress cannot take place. And this is the common enemy to the national development of Sierra Leone which exists between these two political parties.
The impasse between the two parties is yet to be completely resolved though the Tripartite Report has sent a signal of ending it once and for all. Party supporters of both parties still stick to the belief that it is their leader who will, at the end of the day, emerge as the leader. This centre focus of the so-called Tripartite Report has in many ways been a distraction to nationalistic movements of Sierra Leone as a nation.
To this end, this writer recommends that, we, the citizenry, have to think Sierra Leone first. It should be boiling in our minds that there is no other country to be proud of except Sierra Leone. And for our well-being to be guaranteed, we have to take care of Mama Salone first. We should not afford to the risk the future of this country in the hands of APC-SLPP leadership tussle. And for the political leaders or presidential aspirants who end up losing the race of a political battle, they should not find it difficult to accept defeat so that the country should not be subjected to peril.
And the electoral body should also be honest and work within the standards expected of it as an institution. If there is no trust and confidence in it, there will always be doubts and dissatisfaction in the electoral results.
