Sierra Leone, here I come!

Commentary

By Sheka Tarawalie (Shekito) in Manchester,UK.

By this time next week, I’ll be in Freetown. I’ll again touch the soil of my native Sierra Leone. What a moment! Indeed it is not the excitement of picking up a political appointment that overwhelms me, it is the thought that the SLPP that persecuted me so much is no more in power, and I can go home feeling safe.

O how I long to walk the streets of Freetown again, how I cherish the moment of walking through Siaka Stevens Street (or whatever you may want to call it) and seeing those hapless street traders - I mean those of school-going age - and having to shed a tear or two for them; O how I look forward to traveling to my hometown by road and seeing the bolilands on the way; I long to see Koinadugu’s wara-wara mountains; I want to sleep in the Hotel Sir Milton in Bo; I want to see the forests on the highway to Kenema; I once more want to hear the rain falling on my roof and thinking that some heavenly host are singing a song about Sierra Leone; and, you can’t beat this, I am even anxious to meet Sama Banya again and shake his hand before he finally gives up.

In all his major speeches since he came to power, President Ernest Bai Koroma has, like his predecessor, called on Sierra Leoneans in the Diaspora to return home and contribute to national development; and, unlike his predecessor, he has followed his word with action by actually calling a good number of foreign-based individuals to take some positions in government. As ministers, deputy ministers, or diplomats, Sierra Leoneans abroad have for the first time been given a greater opportunity to prove their mettle in governance. Certainly the President knows that it is mainly out of extreme necessity that many have been forced to leave their homeland to seek greener or safer pastures elsewhere. And I believe it is in that same spirit that President Koroma picked up the phone to call me and give me the position of Press Secretary at State House. It was not my idea; I did not lobby the President for any position; it’s his idea, it’s his prerogative. All I did was to accept the honour of serving him, my country, my people, and my God.

Of course you may have now known that, ever since, there has been a huge controversy surrounding this appointment. And in this I find myself lucky, or I should say blessed. It’s all about whether I have been appointed as State House Press Secretary or as Press Attaché to China. My simple answer is, either way I am happy to contribute my quota to my country. But the issue is that, the President did not tell me about going to China - no one ever spoke to me about China - he called me to say he had taken the “decision” to make me Press Secretary at State House. And this is an Executive President: you don’t need an official letter; his word is enough. That is why I feel obliged to pack my bags immediately.

I have never been known to fight for power, and I will never fight for power. Power comes from God. And I know President Koroma as a man who prays to the Living God. He therefore does not always need ministerial consultations to make key decisions - the buck stops with him. I respect him for knowing this.
On that Sunday evening when the President called me, I was a bit skeptical in my mind about accepting the position. I realized how much I would be in the political spotlight, how much my serene family life would be affected, and how much my youthfulness would dissipate. But I never said this to the President. I considered that age and health are on my side. So all I did was to say, “As long as you have called on me and that is what you want me to do - though I may have had something else in mind - then with God on our side, and with your support, I can do it”. The conversation then went on and on until I almost forgot that I was speaking to the President, I started asking questions and he had to immediately remind me; “This time I am interviewing you; not you interviewing me” (taking into consideration that I have interviewed him in the past).

Certainly, when I take up this office, my responsibility will be to sell the image of the President and the presidency to the world through the press. Knowing President Koroma as a lover of press freedom, I believe he has called upon me, definitely by divine direction, to build a bridge between the press and the presidency. And I will like to create a conducive environment where journalists from all sides of the political divide will have access to information. Mine will be a pro-active approach to information dissemination: I’ll be on the offensive, instead of in the defensive.

I’ll engage journalists, both local and international, in healthy discussions about moving our country forward; I’ll invite the views and opinions of many, whether bizarre and outlandish, and look at the merits therein in the national interest. I’ll not fight with journalists; I’ll feel with them; I’ll not hate journalists; I’ll hug them; I’ll not berate them, I’ll bear with them. We shall all work together, in the interest of our nation - and to promote the vision of the President to lift Sierra Leone up from the ashes of war. It will be my duty to ensure that journalists join the presidential bandwagon to achieve set targets for the general welfare.

As the days went by since the President called on me, the wisdom of his choice continually dawned on me. It can only be a positive end. I want to do my utmost in this job, to the extent that - even with my human foibles, because ‘to err is human’ - if Judgement Day comes when I’m in office, the Lord will still look at me and say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant; come in and share in our Father’s Kingdom”

President Koroma knows why he has chosen me to serve his government, but I can only say he is indeed running the state as a business enterprise with him as the Managing Director. He is hiring those he believes will help boost his business - and he does not need to tell his other employees about who else he is employing or why he is employing more.

The President gave me his word, and I gave him mine. So, Sierra Leone, here I come. See you soon, land that I love, and God bless all Sierra Leoneans.