By Kemo Cham
Sierra Leone’s President, Julius Maada Bio, used his Independence Day address to rally support against the spiraling Covid-19 pandemic.
Bio appealed to Sierra Leoneans to bear with restrictions imposed as part of efforts to contain the virus, noting that as unbearable as they feel, they are necessary to get life back to normalcy.
“I am…profoundly grateful to every Sierra Leonean who has complied with restrictions on movement, assembly, livelihood, and lifestyles. Those measures may seem intrusive and unbearable now, but they are necessary to break the chain of transmission so we can return to normal life and routine,” Bio said in the nationwide address marking the 59th anniversary of the country’s independence from Britain.
Despite the promises of a somber celebration held by the ongoing global health emergency, many Sierra Leoneans did well to make it a joyous one. All of it was on social media, where people shared messages of encouragement and prayers for the nation to beat the pandemic.
Many shared photos of themselves in the country’s national colors.
The celebration comes as most Sierra Leoneans are locked in their homes due to fear of contracting the virus which has long assumed community transmission in the country.
Millions of other Sierra Leoneans are confined to their district unable to travel to other part of the country due to an partial lockdown and nationwide curfew.
President Bio praised the resilience of all Sierra Leoneans for coping with the restrictions, urging all to serve as communicators and social mobilisers who do not only act to prevent Corona but also educate their loved ones, neighbours, and communities about the disease with the goal of terminating its transmission.
Bio also challenged Sierra Leoneans to espouse patriotism, which he said wasn’t about standing up only for people with whom one shared the same political loyalties, ethnicity, or region.
“It is about embracing and caring about people who hold different views, and who belong to different ethnicities and different regions. It is about standing up for the ideal that your country’s call in its hour of need is supreme,” he said.
The Sierra Leonean leader went on to say that if Ebola, natural disasters and war didn’t vanquished the collective resolve of Sierra Leoneans to survive, they should overcome the current crisis and together build a strong and productive nation.
President stressed the importance of working collectively to restore the country to its development trajectory before the advent of the pandemic, warning that the path towards attaining that would be arduous.
“You all know that before the COVID-19 pandemic, we had made steady progress as a nation. There had been improved macroeconomic stability, increased revenue mobilization, and we had taken measures to open the country up for competitive and rewarding investments in various sectors,” he said.
He added: “We had allocated 21% of national budget to support free quality education for two million children regardless of gender and ethnicity. We were building effective and resilient institutions and fettering corruption because corruption is inimical to our development. We were deploying new technologies for governance, education, healthcare, agriculture and for business. We will continue pursuing these and many more as we fight to contain COVID-19.”
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