"Patrice Lumumba, who was murdered in a filthy international conspiracy implemented by Mobutu in
the sixties for his Pan-Africanism, would be pinching himself in the
grave for the dastardly mistake he made for advising Mobutu, the eventual
tyrant, to forego journalism. Frank Kposowa reminds me of Mobutu and even looks like him!"
By Abu B. Shaw, Vanguard London Bureau Chief.
Many Sierra Leonean journalists are vying for political seats in the August
11 parliamentary and presidential elections. It is, without doubt, their
constitutional right to do so as citizens of Sierra Leone.
Surprisingly, however, one name that has raised eyebrows is the name
Frank Kposowa. I could not believe my big ears when I heard that Kposowa, a
veteran journalist,one of the most unscrupulous Sierra Leone has ever produced, is leading the slow but relentless exodus to politics. It reminds me of
the late dictator President Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire, today known as the
Democratic Republic of Congo.
Frankly, I do not have any grievance against Kposowa as a person but as
former president of the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ), I
have a very serious problem with his conduct. Kposowa was and still is, I believe,
not a man of high journalistic principles considering his SLAJ tenure from 1996 to 1999.I have a serious problem with Kposowa’s tenure as president of SLAJ, I would like to emphasize.
Very rarely do journalists who throw their hats in the political ring make the grade in their new profession. Late President Mobutu Sese Seko comes to
mind as an example. He was a very brilliant journalist in the fifties. His
flair in writing critical articles attracted many political heavyweights
such as the late Congolese Prime Minister, Patrice Lumumba.
Mr Lumumba, one of the true sons of Africa,introduced Mobutu to politics and later made him head of the army(Mobutu was also a soldier) and one of his closest aides. But Mobutu, who became a CIA and Belgian secret service operative,later ousted Lumumba and killed him.
Years later, Mobutu, the
politician, plunged his country into tremendous depths of banditry and anarchy. Up to this
day, Mobutu’s negative imprints have continued to destroy his once prosperous country.
Patrice Lumumba, who was murdered in a filthy international conspiracy implemented by Mobutu in
the sixties for his Pan-Africanism, would be pinching himself in the
grave for the dastardly mistake he made for advising Mobutu, the eventual
tyrant, to forego journalism. Frank Kposowa reminds me of Mobutu and even looks like him!
Please don’t get me wrong. This is not sour grapes or envy. My opinion about Kposowa is purely a matter of principle.The man lacks principles. Here is an example to buttress my point:
Latest reports from Freetown have confirmed that Frank
Kposowa, the current Managing Director of UNITY NOW(a pro- SLPP newspaper) has
successfully secured a symbol to vie for a constituency in Bo district,
southern Sierra Leone. He is running for a parliamentary seat under the
banner of the ruling Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP). UNITY NOW newspaper
has always been the propaganda machine outlet of the ruling SLPP.
Now that Kposowa has been handed this precious SLPP symbol, he is half way
to parliament, the law making body in Sierra Leone. My only advice for the
electorate in this Bo constituency is that they should put Kposowa on the
defensive to clearly spell out his political agenda.
Highlighting good
principles during electioneering is obviously not a guarantee that Kposowa
will abide by his manifesto. I know that obeying rules and regulations is
very uncharacteristic of Kposowa.
If his SLAJ years are anything to go by, then Kposowa is definitely not
good political material. This is the reason:
During the bloody invasion of
Freetown by the "peace-keeping force" ECOMOG in February 1998 to restore the
inept government of President Tejan Kabbah to power, several
journalists, including myself, were arrested and detained at the Pademba Road
Prison in Freetown.
Frank Kposowa shocked the international media community when he told the world in 1998 that his colleagues that were arrested and falsely charged with treason by the SLPP(Ibrahim Kargbo,current SLAJ president, Dennis Smith,Hilton Fyle, Gipu Felix-George,Conrad Roy, etc)were not journalists but politicians that deserved to be killed.
Many journalists fled to exile fearing for their safety.
We were falsely accused of collaborating with the ousted AFRC regime of Major Johnny Paul Koroma.
What was our crime? Our only crime was failing to flee with the SLPP
government to neighbouring Guinea when they were overthrown by the AFRC
junta. Also for persistently opposing any form of military intervention to
resolve the crisis in Sierra Leone. We were in favour of a negotiated
settlement which the SLPP war mongers had opposed. In the final analysis,
after thousands of lives were lost and millions of pounds of property were
damaged in the country, the SLPP made a shameful U-turn to negotiate for
peace in the Togolese capital, Lome.
What Kposowa and his SLAJ cohorts did after our arrest was appalling.
Instead of protesting and campaigning for our immediate release, Kposowa
surreptitiously connived with the SLPP government to terminate our
membership of SLAJ. Worse, they banned a few selected newspapers and radio
stations, thus leaving the arrested journalists virtually at the mercy of
vengeful SLPP thugs and armed killers under the watchful eyes of the Nigerian contingent of so-called ECOMOG
peace keeping force.
Many journalists were charged with treason, including Conrad Roy, the News
Editor of the then defunct EXPO TIMES newspaper. Conrad Roy died in
detention on February 1999 in mysterious circumstances.
Another EXPO TIMES
staff member, Alie Wyse Koroma, who was in hiding, also lost his life in Freetown.
Three EXPO TIMES editors Ibrahim Seaga Shaw, Charles Abayomi Roberts and Gibril Gbanabome Koroma went abroad.
Had it not been for the tireless protests by international journalism
associations like the Paris-based Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) and the
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) in New York, I would not have had
this opportunity to write this piece. For the 10 months I was in prison in
1998, Kposowa’s SLAJ did not make any attempt to assist me and the other
detained journalists. That was Kposowa at his worst!
If such a man who could turn his back on innocent members during their period
of incarceration, then such an individual is naturally not born to lead.
That is why I am warning the electorate of Kposowa’s Bo constituency that
not all that glitters is gold. He is somebody who could stop at nothing to
accomplish his selfish goals. He is a master of manipulation. No wonder,
Kposowa is one of very few journalists in Sierra Leone who has never been arrested or detained.
Kposowa aside, other household names in the journalism industry in Sierra
Leone who are trying their luck in politics include a former SLAJ President
Ibrahim El-Tayib Bah; Mr. Chernor Ojukwu Sesay, Editor and Publisher of the
POOL Newspaper; Broadcast journalist Mykel Charlie Hinga and Jacob Koroma,
General Editor of the African Champion newspaper.
Confirming this story from Freetown, journalist Abdul Rahman Swarray, who is
General Manager of an FM radio and a newspaper owned by professional
footballer Mohamed Kallon, disclosed that unlike Kposowa, Tayib Bah was rejected and failed to get a symbol in a constituency in Kenema district, eastern Sierra
Leone. Bah, who succeeded Kposowa as SLAJ boss, was defeated by a female
candidate, a former civil servant. SLPP journalist, Mykel Hinga, a former
broadcaster at the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Service, also secured a symbol
for Freetown Central one constituency.
The opposition All Peoples Congress party APC, has also netted some
journalists running under its flag. Journalists Ojukwu Sesay and Jacob
Koroma are lobbying for APC symbols to go to parliament. Ojukwu Sesay is
believed to be contesting in an APC dominated area in the Port Loko
district, northern Sierra Leone(latest reports say Ojuku has lost to the son of APC co-founder SAT Koroma). I don’t know whether Jacob succeeded.
Come Saturday, August 11 2007, elections time in Sierra Leone, I
wholeheartedly wish all the vying journalists best of luck with the
exception of Frank Kposowa. I think he shares a lot with Mobutu.
In closing, I would like to dedicate this article to colleague journalists, Conrad Roy and Alie Wyse
Koroma who lost their lives in the struggle. May their souls rest in peace.
Photo: Mobutu Sese Seko Waza Banga. Is Frank Kposowa trying to copy Mobutu?
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