As the political temperature gets hotter, political parties are busy with their primaries amidst tension in some cities. The diamond-rich Kono is regarded as a potential flash point because of its history as a swing district. While the Sierra Leone People's Party won all but one of the eight parliamentary seats in the district in 2007, the All People's Congress had an almost clean sweep of the municipal and local council elections in 2008. With the November elections ticking closer and fast, the two main parties have chosen their candidates to run for Mayor of Kono, arguably the second most deprived of the five municipalities in the country despite its huge diamond resources.
While we hope to speak with the candidate of the opposition SLPP party, today we talk to the APC candidate, Sahr Emerson Lamin who spoke to our reporter, Alpha Daramy Sesay.
Politico: What do you think is the reason for your successful bid to win the APC symbol, especially having contested with high profile APC
stalwarts like Diana Konomanyi’s father, F.D. Konomanyi.?
SEL: In this post-war era, we actually saw the dynamics of leadership in young people being that I took up an appointment at the Kono
District Council as Deputy Chief Administrator in 2009. During that short three-year period, the impact I created in the area of
administration and also implementing projects that were under my purview were very successful, including allowing the media to ensure
transparency and accountability to the people. The people saw in me all of these virtues and realized that I can be trusted to actually handle such a royal position.
Politico: Who were some of the contesters for the symbol and why do you think you were the better choice?
SEL: I contested with the former town clerk in the 1980s and 90s, F.D. Konomanyi, who was a great administrator indeed and incumbent, Sahr Musa Sessi-Gbenda. Four of us actually ran for the symbol and fortunately for me, I won.
Politico: If you are eventually elected mayor of Kono, what would you do for the people of Kono?
SEL: The people of Kono have several felt needs but in the local council as you know Sierra Leone has three strata of governance; we have the
central governance, the local governance and governance at the chiefdom level. All these three are intertwined in implementing
projects. Most of the felt needs must have been embedded in the city council development plan. So I will take that into consideration.
That notwithstanding, I will employ the Participatory Poverty Analysis (PPA) approach wherein the common man will have a say in
governance. That will be done through open forum by the ward development committee members. The Koidu municipality comprises three
wards: ward 62, 63 and 64 and all of these wards have their priorities and I will take that into consideration. So I will have to employ what is known as open forum wherein their sayings will be heard. There has to be a policy wherein accountability and transparency will be shown to the people, how much the council generates on a monthly basis and how the revenue is spent. Also, we have to create a forum through monthly council meetings to ask necessary questions whether the revenue generated was judiciously used or not.
Politico: Kono is one of the least developed districts in Sierra Leone; it lacks pipe borne water, good road network, electricity etc. How will
you address these problems if you are elected mayor?
SAL: I want to take exception that Kono is one of the worst districts. But you have to take into consideration what Kono went through in the
eleven-year war. Also, one should realize that Kono suffered about 96% destruction including infrastructure. So you can imagine the
relics of the war are still there written on the walls; you can see still burnt houses, destroyed structures even mosques and churches
were not speared in the destruction. But i am also pleased to tell you that Koidu is the fastest growing city at the moment and it has
extended beyond where it was before the war. So we are gradually improving. We still lack electricity but if you now visit Kono
you will see that the poles are already planted and we are expecting power to be switched on within a month or two. You will also see
signs that there will soon be tarmac roads as contractors have already completed the drainage system and very shortly, we will have
pipe borne water. Through the revenue we generate we will definitely address those issues by partnering with other councils in the
diaspora, especially UK and US and see how we can revamp relationship with those councils.
Politico: Octea, formerly Koidu Holdings is the largest diamond mining company operating in diamond in the country and civil society organizations
are questioning the agreements signed by past administration with that company, which do not seek the welfare of the people. What have you to say about these allegations?
SAL Yes, they did not sign policies in the interests of the local people. But you have to realise that mining as a sector is not devolved to
the local council. It is still in the hands of the central government. That is the first line one has to draw and these laws are made by parliamentarians and not the local councils. However, I have seen and realized over the past years the several hiccups between Octea and the local people.
Politico: What is your final comment?
SAL: MY plans are embedded in nine “Rs”:
-
Respect
for the institutions of local authorities; -
Restore
infrastructural developments to communities; -
Recharge
the dynamo in women, youths and the physically challenged; -
Release
resources on health care services, education, energy clean water and
the environment; -
Reform
policies on own source revenue mobilization; -
Resist
divisive partisan politics; -
Revamp
relations with INGOs, CBOs, the media and the donor family through
twining; Regain the glory of Koidu City; -
Reign
with the grass-root in actualizing the Agenda for Prosperity.
Politico: I thank you.
(c) Politico 14/09/12
