By Alpha Amadu Jalloh
Mr. President, today, I come to your office to ask a few simple questions.
I am surprised, no, utterly baffled, to learn about your ministers going around distributing hundreds of bags of rice to people. I would have used the term “DESTITUTES,” but out of the deep respect I have for my fellow Sierra Leoneans, I will not. These people are not in this condition because they are lazy or unwilling to work for a better life.
No, Mr. President, they are in this condition because your leadership has created an environment where survival is a daily battle, where hope is an illusion, and where prosperity is an unreachable dream. Every day, more and more families slip further into the abyss of abject poverty, left to fend for themselves while those in power bask in the wealth of the nation’s stolen resources.
Mr. President, I ask you and your government to explain to the people: how do these ministers and heads of government institutions afford to pay for such large amounts of rice to distribute so generously? Are they using their personal salaries? Or is this another episode in the grand scheme of blatant corruption where taxpayers’ money is funneled into a system designed to sustain political patronage and deception? The people need answers, Mr. President.
One particular case that has truly “stoned my mind” is that of your Minister of Lands, Mr. Turad Senesi, and a few others who are closely connected to you or to Jos Leijdekkers. Their sudden generosity is deeply suspicious, especially when the majority of Sierra Leoneans can barely afford a meal a day. Mr. President, are these acts of charity or desperate attempts to buy public sympathy ahead of inevitable accountability? “Una Nor Dae Fraid God Sef? Ay Bo Wan Shame, Una Nor Get Bak”
Mr. President, how do you feel knowing that the very people who elected you are being treated as second-class citizens in their own land? Your government’s policies, or lack thereof, have impoverished them, yet, in their desperation, they are expected to show gratitude for handouts that should never have been necessary in the first place.
And then, there is the issue of your wife, the First Lady. She is all over the place, silencing anyone who dares to question her overreach in governance. I want to remind you that governance is about service, not intimidation.
Let’s talk about the chartered flight that you have been using, Mr. President.
You fly around the world like a “headless chicken,” hopping from one country to another with no visible benefit to Sierra Leone. Meanwhile, Al Sisi, next door to the Gaza crisis, is not flying as frequently as you. So, what exactly are you hiding from, Mr. President? “Bra, na wetin yu hide up to God so? Or yu wan go see God befo Tem?”
The people have noticed your new plane, a sleek black jet, a stark symbol of luxury amidst national suffering. But let me be very clear: Sierra Leoneans are not happy, Mr. President. One day, you will be held accountable for all this mismanagement.
Mr. President, you were elected to lead, to govern, to uplift the lives of your people, but what have you done instead? You have turned governance into a playground for corruption, nepotism, and reckless extravagance. The people are watching, and history will not be kind to you if you continue down this path. Mr. President, Can We Talk?
