Mr. President, can we talk ? Part 7

Mr. President, today I must speak with you openly and earnestly. Our country stands at a crossroads, and as its leader, the responsibility to steer us forward is yours. In this discussion, I want to focus on an area often ignored but crucial to our progress: the state of our civil service.

When you first assumed office in 2018, I was optimistic. I remember how you made surprise visits to various ministries, observing firsthand how our civil servants were executing their duties. It was a commendable move, a signal of the kind of leader you intended to be. It showed that you understood governance required hands-on leadership. But what happened? That momentum didn’t last. Somewhere along the line, the drive to reform the civil service faded, and we find ourselves in a mess today. And Mr. President, as uncomfortable as it may be, we need to acknowledge that some of the responsibility for this decline falls squarely on your shoulders.

Let’s revisit the early days of your administration. You inherited a civil service that, while flawed, had pockets of competency. Rather than focus on improving the quality and professionalism within these ranks, you began a purge. Members of the civil service who you believed sympathized with the opposition All People’s Congress (APC) were dismissed, and in their place, you brought in individuals aligned with your party, the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP). But therein lies the problem: many of these individuals were not selected based on merit or ability to serve. They were appointed as compensation for political loyalty.

Now, here we are, six years into your leadership, and even within your own party, frustration is growing. Why? Because meritocracy has taken a backseat to political patronage. Qualified and capable individuals within the SLPP feel sidelined in favour of others who may have no idea how to perform the tasks required of them in their new roles. This dissatisfaction isn’t just affecting the SLPP; it’s eroding the very foundation of our government.

Mr. President, take a look at your administration. How many of your ministers’ hail from the diaspora? I have no problem with the idea of bringing in talent from abroad; indeed, some of these individuals are highly qualified and add great value. But, let’s be honest, many were not brought in for their qualifications. They were given positions because you needed to reward them for their political loyalty. As a result, there are more people waiting in the queue, hoping for their compensation, more people who feel they deserve something simply because they backed your rise to power.

This issue doesn’t stop at the ministerial level. It permeates the civil service as well, where incompetence now festers, spreading like an unchecked cancer. Mr. President, our ministries have become virtual marketplaces, full of workers collecting salaries for work they are not doing, or worse, holding multiple positions in different ministries, siphoning off wages for which they do no labor. What happened to your pledge to block all the loopholes in government? I’ll tell you, “E tan lek na yu don cam opin di loophole dem o.”

Mr. President, you have allowed this system to flourish. You’ve been so preoccupied with projecting yourself as a benevolent leader that you’ve allowed our state institutions to be ravaged by incompetence. You promised to fight against wastage, yet here we are, civil servants drawing salaries for jobs they don’t perform, while others languish under poverty.

Let’s talk about that poverty. Are you aware that, as of today, the average salary for many of these civil servants is Nle 800. Do you understand what that means for the average Sierra Leonean trying to survive in our economy? A bag of rice now costs around Nle 1,000, often even more. How do you expect civil servants to feed their families, pay rent, or cover school fees on such meager earnings?

You spoke highly of your Free Quality Education initiative, but let’s be honest, is it really free when parents still have to spend so much on extra costs? The cost of living has skyrocketed, yet wages have stagnated. And when civil servants find ways to scrape by, often resorting to petty corruption, they become the targets of your Anti-Corruption Commission. But why? They are forced into survival mode because your bloated government is draining resources that could otherwise be used to increase their wages. You have created a system where it is impossible for civil servants to survive on their pay alone, yet you expect them to work with integrity.

Moreover, let’s consider the state of the civil service itself. In an era of advanced technology, we still employ hundreds of typists in various ministries, an unnecessary expense. In the age of digital transformation, our workforce is stuck in the past. How can we talk about fighting waste when we are still employing people for jobs that have been rendered obsolete by technology? Mr. President, the government must lead by example, and that begins with slimming down and modernizing our workforce.

Now, I know you are preparing for the United Nations General Assembly in a few days, and I suspect you’re gearing up for another high-profile appearance on the international stage. But as you make your plans, I implore you to consider this: do you really need a delegation of 60 people with you this time? In past years, we’ve seen you and your team stay in the most luxurious hotels in New York, spending lavishly while the people back home suffer. The people notice, Mr. President. We see where the money goes, and it only deepens our disillusionment.

I’m telling you this because I care about Sierra Leone. We can no longer afford to ignore the rot within our civil service. It is draining our economy, stifling progress, and creating a culture of entitlement rather than merit. As the leader, it is within your power to change this.

I thank you for your time, Mr. President. But please, before you head off to the international stage again, take a moment to reflect on the civil servants who keep our country running. They are the backbone of our government, and they deserve better. The people of Sierra Leone deserve better.

This conversation isn’t over, Mr. President. I’ll be watching closely. Until next time.