By Prince Musa
The underdevelopment and deplorable state of Kenema District should be blamed on bad politicking, a government minister says.
Ishmail Sengu Koroma, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, blamed the situation on local politicians whom he accused of “jealousy, tribalism and selfish leadership.”
He also vowed to use force, if necessary, to get people to tow the line of the government for development to come to the eastern district.
The eastern region, considered as an opposition dominated area, is thought to be the most run down and neglected province of Sierra Leone. Kenema District in particular comes to mind because its headquarters, Kenema, is the third largest city after Freetown and Bo. The town is a deplorable condition especially its roads which are virtually all riddled with potholes. But its residents have also decried the lack of proper healthcare and educational facilities.
But while Sengu Koroma blames bad politics among its indigenes for the situation, locals hold the central government squarely responsible. They accuse the Ernest Bai Koroma-led government of neglect and bias in the distribution of national resources which they say favours the north - his home and his party’s stronghold.
A former US Marine, Major (rtd) Sengu Koroma is himself a native of Kenema District. He infamously switched allegiance to the governing All People’s Congress (APC) in the run up to the 2012 elections after losing in primaries for the presidential ticket of the main opposition Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), which dominates the district according to figures from previous elections. He was rewarded with a ministerial post for switching allegiance to Ernest Bai Koroma who won that election for his second and final term.
At a meeting with local youth leaders early this month, Sengu spoke about the way forward for the development of Kenema boasting that he would do all he could to get everyone onboard, even if it meant arresting those who did not support his ideas.
“I will bulldoze and arrest anybody that will serve as stumbling block for the development of Kenema,” he said at the meeting held with the Baghad Youth Group at Cokarjah Street in Kenema City. He said he was speaking not as a politician but as a “son of the soil”, noting that he wanted to serve as a “strong bridge” between the people of Kenema and the government to ensure the district benefited from the “national cake”.
Representatives of four youth groups, comprising over 300 young people, attended the meetings held at various locations in the city.
Sengu urged the youths to put aside their political differences and help build a cohesive structure that would enable the development of the district which he said had been lagging behind for too long.
While the people of Kenema yearn for development in many aspects, the deplorable nature of its roads has particularly stood out. Notable among these are the Blama, Hangha and Dama roads, as well as the road on Maxwell Khobe Street on which all of the government offices in the town are located. The deputy minister said plans were underway to start work on Blama and Hangha roads, and called on the people to support and monitor the project when it kicks off.
One of the youth leaders, David Kekula Sama, shared the Minister’s concern over the state of political rivalry in the district. Sama said it’s no secret that individual authorities in Kenema did not see eye to eye as a result of the lack of “decent politicking.” He cited the example of the Kenema City Mayor being at loggerheads with some of his councillors.
“The time for politics is over and it’s time for development,” Sama said.
But the SLPP has dismissed the minister’s comment on bad politicking, blaming his ruling APC instead for the situation. Yakuba Nyallay, District Chairman of the SLPP, said the minister was accusing the opposition for what his party was guilty of. He said the APC had presided over a divided nation through its “biased” development initiatives.
“The people of Kenema will support SLPP and will continue to vote SLPP,” he said. Nyallay also reserved a word for the former US mariner, describing him as an “unreliable politician who defected from a party because he didn’t get what he wanted”.
Last month a coalition of civil society groups wrote an open letter to the ombudsman complaining the central government over the “bias” in development funds allocation. Among the CSOs which signed that letter was Movement for the Restoration of Democracy, whose leader also slammed Sengu Koroma for his comment.
Copyright (c) Politico 2016
