By Alpha Amadu Jalloh
Mr. President, I return again with a heavy heart, compelled by duty to speak the truth as I see it. This time, let us talk about your Resident Minister East, Mr. Ngobeh. Let us talk about the choices you have made and how those choices have worsened the suffering of the people you swore to serve.
Mr. President, I ask you openly and without fear. Is Mr. Ngobeh truly fit to be appointed as a minister in the first place? What qualities does this man possess that qualify him to serve as resident minister in the East, a region that has given so much to your political journey? Does he represent competence, integrity, or vision? Or is he simply another in a long list of people you have elevated as payback for loyalty rather than for their ability to deliver on the hopes and needs of the people?
Mr. President, this is what pains me the most. You have chosen to surround yourself with mediocrities. People who have no business managing ministries. People whose only qualification is their willingness to sing your praises and defend your failures. These are not leaders. These are not public servants. These are opportunists who see their positions as a meal ticket, not a sacred duty. And Sierra Leone continues to bleed because of it.
Look at what your resident minister has done. The people of Kenema are still talking about it. He stood before them without shame and lied through his teeth. He told them that you, Mr. President, have delivered all that was promised in your manifesto. How does a man fabricate such falsehoods with a straight face? How does he expect the people to believe such nonsense when they live daily with broken promises, crumbling infrastructure, empty hospitals, and schools that are falling apart?
Mr. President, is this the caliber of leadership you want to be remembered for? Do you not see how this embarrasses your office and further alienates you from the very people you need most? The people are not fools. They see through these lies. They know when a man stands before them to insult their intelligence. And that is exactly what your resident minister did.
Mr. President, I ask again. Who are you really? Are you a Sierra Leonean like me? A man who wakes up every day with the hope that our country will rise from the ashes of poverty and corruption? A man who prays sincerely for a better life for our people? Are you one of us, or have you become something else entirely? Have you become so intoxicated by power, so consumed by the comforts of office, that you no longer feel the pain of the ordinary man?
What I find even more disgraceful, Mr. President, is the charade that was recently staged in the name of a presidential town hall meeting. Why, Mr. President, would you allow your lying information minister to organize such a meeting knowing full well that you had no intention of attending? Was it just another exercise in deception? Another opportunity for your ministers to peddle lies and empty promises while you hide away from the people you owe answers?
Let us be honest. The people of Kenema expected you. They deserved your presence. They waited in the heat, in the dust, in their frustration and desperation, hoping that you would at least show them the respect of facing them in person. But no. Once again you disappointed them. You chose to hide behind others, sending men who have mastered the art of lying and covering up your failures.
Mr. President, this is not leadership. This is cowardice. A leader faces his people. A leader listens to the cries of his citizens and responds with humility and action. A leader does not send half-baked ministers to deliver lies and insults to the very people who have suffered the most under his rule.
I ask you today. What exactly is your plan for Kenema? What is your plan for the East, for the South, for the North, and for the West? Is there a plan at all, or are we doomed to continue under this cloud of deception and mediocrity until your term ends?
Mr. President, you have failed to realize that the people of Sierra Leone are no longer blind. They no longer swallow the lies so easily fed to them by your government’s machinery. They see through the slogans, the staged meetings, and the carefully crafted speeches written by your image handlers. They see the reality. A country in decay. A nation of missed opportunities. A land of broken dreams.
Your legacy is being written every day. And if you continue down this path, it will not be written with honor. It will be a legacy of betrayal, of arrogance, of failure. The sad part is that it did not have to be this way. You had the chance to be great. The people were ready to follow you. But you have chosen instead to follow the advice of sycophants and opportunists.
Look at Mr. Ngobeh. A man who should never have been appointed. A man whose only strength seems to be in inventing lies and peddling them without shame. This is the man you trust to represent you in one of the most important regions of this country. This is the man who speaks in your name. Mr. President, you owe Sierra Leoneans an apology. And you owe them better.
It is time to reflect. It is time to stop the charade. The people are tired. Tired of lies. Tired of empty promises. Tired of watching their hopes dashed again and again by those in whom they placed their trust.
Mr. President, Sierra Leone is watching. Kenema is watching. And history is watching. The choice is yours. Will you continue down this road of mediocrity and deception, or will you finally rise to the occasion and lead with courage, honesty, and purpose?
The time to decide is now.
