By Dadson A. Musa

Successive governments in Sierra Leone have failed us over the years. Not because they cannot but due to reasons of greed and lack of patriotism. If a country like Sierra Leone with vast resources; human and material still lags behind, then this is course for concern. Our steady decline started just after independence in 1961 where currency devaluation, standards devaluation and moral devaluation all have seen us occupying the bottom of the human development index. Governments after governments stand guilty. Once in opposition they criticize not for the general good but for the simple reason that they are not in power. In opposition, they even want the government in power to fail regardless of the fact that if the government fails so many people are going to bear the brunt. And pulling down one another is something we must avoid as a country.

Doing very little for the people and making mountains out of it has been the hallmarks of our rulers since independence. Most times they get projects and money is disbursed. In some cases, 50% of the budget or even below is implemented and the rest becomes history. Sometimes we have come to know that nothing is implemented and they dare anyone to ask them questions. Those monies are shared among stakeholders and the public continues to suffer. As small as Sierra Leone is with vast resources do they want to tell us that it is too difficult to run this country? I’m afraid, not. It is the self – serving attitudes of our leaders that has got us to where we are.

I blame us in the media for giving corrupt leadership – then and now – the platform to propagate and celebrate pittance that means nothing to all of us. Cases in point that little have been done and the stakeholders want the world to believe that they have delivered so much. State farms that were meant to reduce hunger, chiefdom youth farms, car wash centers around the country, boats for coastal communities. If these projects were carried out properly and on grand scale, less youths would have been on Kush. Even with the free quality education, there are still lots of community schools with trained and qualified teachers without pin codes, subsidies that end up largely with principals and ministry officials. With all the hyped road and bridge projects if you go into the interior part of Sierra Leone there are still hard-to-go areas and deplorable road conditions across the country. SLAJ (Sierra Leone Association of Journalists) must have a memorandum of understanding that for all projects that the media must report it must be made clear that until 80% or more of the project is implemented before journalists report on them. As journalists, we must stop helping government officials to deceive the populace. Concrete work and to a greater degree must be seen on the ground before we report them. We must move away from a situation where very little is done but they want it to be presented as big. For Sierra Leone to grow, government must do more, not less.

Copyright –Published in print in Expo Times Newspaper on Friday, April 26TH, 2024 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)