Subject: WHY A 3RD CHANCE NOT PERMISSIBLE IN POLITICS
From: THE PROMISE
To: All
Date Posted: 12:50:36 06/19/07 ()
Email Address:
Entered From: at 207.108.136.241
Message:
These days there are many talks of given us/me a second or third chance. In 2002 Kabbah and the SLPP went to the people and requested to be given “ONE MORE CHANCE”. The people agreed based on circumstances on the ground then. It has been five years after that and now they are back trying to convince us that they deserve a third chance. All I have heard from the flag bearer is talking about the wonderful things the SLPP has done in the last ten years.
I decided to take a peep at these so called “good things”. Now the first thing that I met on the door step is
“WE ENDED THE WAR AND BROUGHT PEACE TO THE COUNTRY”
This is politically correct but in real fact the cause that ended the war is more than political correctness. The fact was that, the war would have never come to an end if the ECOMOG had not allowed the RUF/SOBEL came to Freetown for the second time and threatened the government of Kabbah again. After Kabbah was reinstated to power, ECOMOG told him to renegotiate with AFRC/RUF fighters.
Sam Hinga Norman, Solomon Berewa and other die hard SLPPists argued that negotiation was unnecessary based on previous peace deals that were not honored by the RUF. They were intended to continue fighting until the RUF/AFRC was completely wiped out. This was a very good calculation especially looking back to the history of these thugs (RUF/AFRC). They argued in the BBC that the war could be won militarily and even created a slang that the war has been won and they were “MOPPING UP” the remnants of the rebels. There is a problem on this perception and claims. Most of the top brass of the RUF/AFRC were at-large either hiding in Liberia or in Kailahun. Nope, there were not even in Kailahun. These guys were in Benguma bushes planning how to attack and killed innocent people in Freetown. Secondly, the ECOMOG saw it in different angle in military term. They knew that you cannot militarily defeat a rebel group that has no regards for human life and that were using children to infiltrate the populace.
Secondly, it’s too hard to fight people with no identifiable uniforms without killing the wrong people in the process.
Tejan Kabbah ignored the advice of the ECOMOG and continued fighting using the Kamajors. ECOMOG step back and watched how Kamajors would be able to defeat the Rebels. In less than five days the rebels were back in Freetown. It was after that Kabbah realized if he was kicked out of power again, his chances of coming back is too unpredictable and agreed to the ECOMOG demands to negotiate and end the war if the ECOMOG would help push back the rebels from Freetown. This was how SLPP was forced to end the war. However it was too late because many lives were lost before the SLPP and Kamajors realized that there was an alternative to war.
“WE BUILT SCHOOLS AND HOPITALS IN THE COUNTRY”
I could not able to find any other “good things” that does not carry a BUT. SLPPists may argue that they’ve built many schools and hospitals in the country. That might be true BUT we have to compare the schools been built to the amount of donors given by the international community, then we will come to the realization that the SLPP has not done enough. According to the World Bank the international community has poured in between 1.5 to 2 billion dollars in Sierra Leone for reconstruction since the end of the war. These figures include loans and other financial sources. Take a look at the country today and tell me or the people of Sierra Leone that the SLPP deserves a third chance.
“WHAT ELSE?”
Nothing I could think of as “good things” until someone point it to me.
THE APC PARTY.
The problem that is facing the so called “NEW APC” if indeed they are new is their history. The first time the people of Sierra Leone gave the APC a first chance, they held to that chance for twenty-four (24) years without renewing the lease. How can they tell the people that history will not repeat itself? They have a lot of talk to convince us that the old APC is dead and buried. The APC candidate has to prove to us that he is not another fruit of the same seed. An APC government has the burden of proof to the people that they are willing to stop corruption, encourage investment into the country and distribute the resources of the country fairly. They have a track record of fair distribution of the resources. Most of the top APC positions were given to the South/East which I believe no one will dispute.
I have recently seen the so called five(5) priorities of the APC led government in the first 100 days of power and I was wondering if it is not only all talkies because it almost impossible for a government in Sierra Leone will ever accomplish such goals within such a short time. My question to the APC is “How can you give 100% light to all the 12 districts in the country within 100 days?” It reminds me of the SLPP promises that if elected they would build the bridge from Freetown to Lungi and would make sure every Sierra Leonean kids would not sleep hungry by 2004. Sometimes too many promises that seem impossible will draw a lot of suspicions.
I have not much to talk about this newly formed party since they’ve not been given the chance to rule. However, my concern is with the leader of the party who happens to be a son of a prime minister whose regime happened to engineer or allowed the first military coup in the country. I may be wrong here, but some accounts that I read indicated that the first coup took place after the 1967 election defeat of the SLPP by the APC. Late Hinga Norman and other military officers staged the coup. Can someone correct me on this please if I am wrong?
Charles Margai happens to be a man who does not know where he is going and may be a little too desperate for power. Again, I may be wrong because I am only given a personal opinion.
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