By Isaac Massaquoi
I would have loved to interview President Koroma after his weekend visit to the Sewa Gounds, the proposed central market in Freetown. All what many newspapers reported was his order that the so-called market stalls built with cheap corrugated iron sheets be pulled down immediately because they were a total mockery of what was really intended by those who conceived the idea of building a market in that place and went on to receive and disburse money for that purpose.
So on the orders of the president, the odd corrugated iron sheet structures have been pulled down for new, much more decent market stalls to be built with new money from the public purse. Money that could have gone into other sectors had the City Council not messed up so badly. Do you now understand why I was dreaming about interviewing the president? There are many issues to explore around this market question alone but presidents are not easily interviewed. Let's wait another day.
Mayor Gibson's judgement has to be called into question because for many months, his spin doctors defended the structures. How can they now tell the nation that they were in fact thinking about doing the same thing just before Dr. Koroma ordered them to do so a few days ago. I heard their spokesman say that on at least two radio stations. It's a real shame that the president had to go to Sewa Grounds to see for himself how tax payers' money had been wasted by a council that continues to underperform despite all its potential and political strength. The Mayor must not wait for the president to publicly order him to do something about hundreds of stray dogs causing havoc all over Freetown.
I had cause to go to Sewa Grounds several times last year to park my vehicle. When the president talked about people engaging in daylight robbery the other day, the parking business in the Central Business District is a perfect example of that. For more than three months, I parked my car in that place together with many other people, and paid two thousand leones daily to a collection of fierce-looking 17-21 year-olds. Of course, no receipts were ever issued to us.
Many times, we parted with even more cash to the boys who would offer to secure our vehicles against criminals. Even though we knew who the real criminals were, we paid the cash. The same situation obtains on the streets of the Central Business District. The amount of money the Freetown City Council is losing as a result of its incompetence is staggering. We know how much the Kampala City Council, for example collects from parking charges alone. Someone in the FCC once told me they were aware of what was happening at the Sewa Grounds and on the streets but that they had to allow those boys to make a living. I suggested to that friend that they could as well employ some of them and organise the parking business to end our suffering. This politically-correct way of running a city like Freetown must stop now.
While the president was at Sewa Grounds, he should have cast his eyes on the other side to see the mess that the same APC-run FCC has made of the only recreational facility that was available to school children - the Victoria Park. The details of how the park became such an eyesore are too murky to attempt to explain in the space available to me but the Council must be prepared because people like us will turn up at their doorstep shortly to fully exercise our rights under the Access to Information Law on this vexed question of why for close to five years, Victoria Park has remained a disgrace in the middle of our city.
Is this Robust policing or intimidation?
Any visitor driving around Freetown for the first time must be excused for thinking that the police were preparing for a major demonstration, like those unnecessarily violent anti-globalisation demonstration we see on TV. Every major junction in Freetown today is occupied by about eight truncheon-wielding police officers in new overalls, fresh from training school. On the face of it, a peaceful citizen like me shouldn't be bothered by the presence of police officers but with regular traffic police officers and wardens covering the same places. It makes little sense to me, for those officers to be standing there the whole day.
I say this because they are all withdrawn by night fall when evil is most free - apologies Shakespeare. I have heard complaints from Aberdeen and some other communities in the east end of Freetown, of armed robbers roaming free at night. Our colleague, Hassan Arouni, was recently attacked by thieves pretending to be passengers in a taxi. He was badly injured and the thieves escaped. So what's the point of deploying police officers in a show of force during the day and not having robust night patrols to keep our neighbourhoods safe? Most communities have withdrawn neighbourhood watch boys after that incident at Wellington where police officers killed two of them - WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE.
The police may have a reason for doing what they are doing now but they will do well to make their presence felt in our vulnerable communities by working with us. Don't they have this thing they call community policing?
By the way, I have just been informed that the ministry of education is going ahead with its annual inter-secondary school athletics meet this year. This daytime junction deployment will be very well tested when those child hooligans leave the stadium on the last day.
Okada riders and their exclusive zones
So the Okada demonstration was called off at the last minute. Okada riders are an interesting lot. They serve thousands of people throughout the country but they can be very ruthless and lawless on the roads. Okadas are so prone to accidents that gradually people are beginning to shy away from them. I understand the emergency hospital at Goderich, which is a real blessing to this country, has stopped admitting Okada accident victims. They are just overwhelmed.
The other point is that a hardcore criminal element has entered into the business and people are being steadily attacked and robbed by men on Okada. The genuine Okada operators must work with the police to identify and destroy that criminal underworld.
Somebody very close to me was saved from the hands of two Okada criminals by a passing car. It could have been worse.
I understand their protest was about alleged police harassment on their designated routes. In Okada mentality, police should not arrest them on those routes even if they break the law. By that logic, we should all prepare for the coming of the Independent Republic of Okadas. It will be an absolutely lawless republic when only "the fittest of the fittest shall survive". For now the laws of Sierra Leone must apply all over the country. No exclusive Okada zones, please.
(C) Politico 13/02/14
