By Alpha Amadu Jalloh
Mr. President, wow, Mr. President, what a shame. As citizens of Sierra Leone, we often hear grand words and promises from the office of the president, rhetoric steeped in promises of integrity, transparency, and accountability. Yet, in this moment, I am compelled to ask, Mr. President: How do you cope when your fabrications unravel, when your assertions are exposed for what they are: elaborate, hollow constructions?
Recently, the Institute of Chartered Accountants cleared Mrs. Lara Taylor-Pearce and Mr. Tamba Momoh, the former Auditor General and her deputy, of any wrongdoing, specifically regarding the financial reports they produced. Both Taylor-Pearce and Momoh were steadfast in their duty to examine government finances and expenditures, particularly those involving your administration. Yet, despite their unimpeachable records and dedication, you saw fit to remove them, casting unfounded accusations against them while claiming a stance of moral high ground. Now the truth has emerged, and it appears you may have moved against them not out of concern for accountability but out of fear of exposure.
Consider what this says, Mr. President, about your leadership. You would expel those who acted with integrity simply because they brought uncomfortable truths to light. These professionals, who did not bow to pressure or succumb to intimidation, have been vindicated, while your administration stands questioned. When did governance in Sierra Leone become a game of subterfuge and cover-up, where the only priority seems to be the preservation of power rather than the elevation of the nation?
The removal of Taylor-Pearce and Momoh from their posts is, in many ways, emblematic of a broader, troubling trend in your leadership. For every instance of accountability you seek to project, there are countless instances of avoidance and obfuscation. The Auditor General’s office exists to ensure that the government uses public funds transparently and responsibly. Instead of allowing them to fulfill their duties, your administration actively worked to muzzle them, going so far as to allegedly forge receipts to sidestep their scrutiny. What do we call a government that manipulates its own expenditures? There is only one fitting term: corruption.
This betrayal of public trust may be concealed under layers of rhetoric, but the people of Sierra Leone are not so easily deceived. It is telling that, even now, many of your core supporters, those who once championed your vision, are beginning to see through the veneer. Even members of your party cry out for opportunities that never seem to materialize, complaining about unfulfilled promises and watching, frustrated, as well-connected figures flaunt wealth with impunity.
While your administration may believe that it can control the narrative by throwing grand titles and achievements into the public discourse, these accolades do not stand up to scrutiny. You often speak of Sierra Leone’s supposed improvements in governance, yet no such improvement is felt by those who truly need it. Your own declaration of Sierra Leone as “the most improved in governance” smacks of exaggeration. Had these organizations truly examined the conditions within our communities, from Freetown to the most remote villages, they would quickly recognize the gap between grandstanding claims and lived reality.
When we hear of these supposed accolades, it is hard not to wonder: What did you promise to those giving out these awards, and how do they justify their ratings? If these bodies could visit Sierra Leone, they would not see a country that has “improved in governance.” Rather, they would witness communities battling severe neglect, citizens trying to survive amid a governance system more focused on international appearances than on alleviating poverty and suffering at home. The irony of your rhetoric, Mr. President, does not escape us.
Even now, as the nation faces substantial challenges in education, your administration fails to address the dire needs of our teachers and schools. Here we are, months into the 2023/2024 academic year, and educators remain unpaid. What message does that send about our nation’s priorities? How can we expect our children to be prepared for the future when the very system meant to educate them is left to flounder?
Teachers are expected to shape the minds of tomorrow, yet they are denied the dignity of timely and fair payment. Instead, apologies and empty promises are offered as a substitute for real action. Apologies do not pay bills, nor do they improve the quality of education. They are a bandage over a wound that requires far more substantive treatment.
And while teachers go unpaid, we watch as certain individuals within your administration seem to revel in displays of wealth, handing out money as though they printed it themselves. The husband of the Minister of Tourism, for example, is reportedly seen throwing money around, flaunting wealth in a nation where many struggle to meet their basic needs. Such displays insult the people of Sierra Leone and raise serious questions about the sources of these sudden fortunes.
This pattern of excess and entitlement is not limited to individuals alone. It seems to be an epidemic within your administration. Members of your party have started splurging on public displays, conveniently as the 2028 elections approach. The people of Sierra Leone are wise enough to recognize the timing of these grand gestures; they know that these displays are an attempt to buy loyalty and votes. But what happens after the elections? The cycle of abandonment will begin anew, as it always does.
It is not just Sierra Leoneans who see through this act. The world is watching, too. The decision to target Lara Taylor-Pearce and Tamba Momoh to suppress truth in favour of political convenience only further exposes the depths to which your administration is willing to sink. You manipulated the justice system to create a smokescreen, using judicial proceedings to silence those who dared to shine a light on the truth. And then there is your Anti-Corruption Commissioner, a man entrusted with safeguarding the integrity of our nation’s resources, yet who seems to revel in his own affluence and privilege. Is this not a bitter irony?
While you spend time traveling the world, attempting to garner prestige and validation from international audiences, Sierra Leone is left without the leadership it so desperately needs. Your appearances on global stages may earn applause, but what do they accomplish for the people who await action on the ground?
These questions are not the musings of a dissident; they are the concerns of a nation that is awake, aware, and increasingly dissatisfied. Sierra Leone deserves better than this, Mr. President. This nation is more than just a political stepping stone or a stage for grandiose displays. It is a country with real people facing real struggles, struggles that cannot be solved by your next international address or another self-congratulatory award.
We, the people of Sierra Leone, are asking for more than empty promises. We ask for integrity, for genuine transparency, and for leadership that puts its citizens above political gain. The vindication of Lara Taylor-Pearce and Tamba Momoh serves as a reminder that the truth, while it may be suppressed for a time, cannot be buried forever.
