By Kabs Kanu
THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT is aware of the bad governance, corruption and human rights abuses of the President Maada Bio government in Sierra Leone. The 2020 U.S State Department Country Report on Sierra Leone has proved this fact. But if so, why is the U.S continuing to provide aid to this president?
The U.S backed President Mobutu of Zaire, Samuel K. Doe of Liberia and Siad Barre of Somali and poured millions of dollars in military and economic aid to their countries at the worst possible times in the history of these fragmented African nations when rampant corruption, dictatorship, bad governance and human rights abuses were rife.
Even the vocal and vibrant U.S. media are at a loss at times to understand their country’s foreign policy and why they support and in some cases arm totalitarian and abusive countries around the world that are busy harming their people.
According to ABC’s Peter Jennings in 1992, the U.S gave President Siad Barrie almost $200 million in military aid and half-a-billion dollars in economic aid . Why did they ignore the President’s horrendous human rights records and corruption ?
Peter Jennings himself answered his question : America turned a blind eye to Barre’s poor human rights records because “To Washington’s satisfaction, he was more than willing to keep Soviet-allied Ethiopia tied down in a debilitating war. “
The U.S will provide military and economic support to any government that protects its parochial and imperial interests around the world. The U.S is ever desirous of controlling the world and keeping its bitter rivals at arms length. Any government that helps them in their quest will receive generous aid from them, whether it is corrupt, dictatorial or terrible in governance.
President Doe did not only oppose socialism; he locked up anybody who preached or practiced socialism in LIberia and during the Cold War , you know how valuable such support was to capitalist U.S. Liberia also housed the VOA African station , the Firestone plantations and the Omega Navigation Station, which the U.S used to monitor West and North Africa and stop the spread of Soviet and communist influence.
So, the fact that the U.S erroneously gave Bio a pass grade in the MCC Compact game and is providing economic support to the government does not mean that the SLPP is ruling well and is pleasing to the U.S and the international community . Bio has stalled the spread of Chinese influence in Sierra Leone and so presently he is the blue-eyed boy of Britain and the U.S
But that does not mean that if President Bio continues in his present BAD BOY path, he will enjoy U.S support forever. While providing economic and military aid,U.S Foreign Policy also includes putting diplomatic pressures on a government behind the scenes to change its repressive policies and corruption, which I believe the U.S government is doing now.
I am seeing that many SLPP supporters have started bragging that because the U.S gave them a pass in the MCC Compact and is also providing economic assistance, it means that the U. S is happy with President Bio and have confidence in his rule. This is not so, even though they are providing aid now.
The time will come when the U.S will change and turn against an ally that fails to listen and institute reforms . They did it to Siad Barre, Mobutu and Doe. In fact, through the CIA, they can remove a government they are supporting that refuses to listen to them. So, let SLPP propagandists stop taking U.S assistance to this government as a carte blanche approval of their hurtful governance.
The most recent 2020 U.S State Department Country Report on Sierra Leone, which indicts the SLPP government of egregious human rights abuses, misrule and corruption is one proof that the U.S is not necessarily pleased with the Bio government . Do not mind the diplomats. They are not sent out to chastise host countries publicly. Their role as diplomats is to promote and strengthen the traditional ties and good relations between the U.S and other countries. They are trained to always speak in complimentary terms.
What is happening in the U.S is that their sociopolitical and economic institutions are independent and operate independently of one another. The MCC, USAID, State Department etc do not interfere in each others’ operations but the time comes when the government acts at last where there are persistent complaints of human rights abuses and corruption. The U.S will never continue to support a bad, totalitarian and corrupt president. The times usually comes when they will say, ENOUGH IS ENOUGH .
The SLPP should not forget also that during the past four years, the U.S was virtually practicing an isolationist style of foreign policy—Trump’s MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN – which removed focus on lesser actors on the international stage. President Biden has re-launched America back as the POLICE MAN OF THE WORLD and this means that the U.S will not ignore Maada Bio’s human rights excesses as President Trump did.
The fact that though they won the MCC Compact, President Bio has still not been called to prepare a compact should give the SLPP food for thought.
