SLPP (Sierra Leone People’s Party)-led government recently celebrated in great joy when the United States government announced that a grant of $484m has been approved for Sierra Leone.
The sum is a grant under the MCC (Millenium Challenge Corporation), an American institution that monitors and reports on democratic and good governance benchmarks such as free speech and press, free and fair elections, fighting against corruption among others.
It goes without saying that access to the money is contingent on the high scores a country scores in the benchmarks.
Sierra Leone, according to former US Ambassador, David Reimer, did well in various benchmarks but failed in the free and fair elections aspect, making it difficult for the money to be released to the government.
However, America’s announcement was highly celebrated by SLPP officials for two reasons: the first holds that the long-awaited and much-needed funds will fill in government’s empty coffers and will also help to legitimise a government trapped in legitimacy crisis. Government still struggles for international and local recognition and acceptance after the June polls as the votes never went in their favour although ECSL (Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone)’s announcement favour them.
Government officials hope that as long as the United States start to offer them money, other powerful countries and organisations such as the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland and above all, the European Union, the United Nations, Commonwealth, African Union and ECOWAS would also trek on the same path.
SLPP’s celebration was however cut short when the MCC donor, the United States reiterated that the release of the MCC grant would be tied to the implementation of the recommendations by the Tripartite Committee. The recommendations are big strings attached to the fund.
The Tripartite Committee is a body set up to investigate alleged irregularities of the June 24, 2023 elections and its recommendations, according to the peace communiqué, are “actionable” and “implementable.”
At the moment, 80 recommendations have come out all bordering on electoral reforms, and it is hoped that their implementation will ensure free, fair and credible elections in the near future.
That notwithstanding, five recommendations are pending with political analysts saying they are bitter pills for President Julius Maada Bio to swallow as their implementation will cost him the presidential power.
The remaining recommendations are anchored mainly on the results examination and electoral justice.
The results examination will establish the actual winner of June 24, 2023 elections while the electoral justice seeks to bring to book those who played significant role in rigging the elections.
With the opposition leader’s votes accounting for 57.15 percent, he is sure to be the next President if the judgment of Kate Sullivan upholds documentary evidence presented by the APC, and that the recommendations will be implemented under Samura Kamara. Recommendations under the electoral justice will see most of Bio’s government officials behind bars as the laws of Sierra Leone particularly the Public Elections Act, 2022 frown at election rigging.
Stealing the people’s mandate is a criminal offence that amounts to treason for one to subvert the will of Sierra Leoneans by declaring a wrong candidate instead of one that legally and rightfully wins the election.
Section 5 of the Constitution of Sierra Leone, 1991 states that “sovereignty belongs to the people of Sierra Leone from whom government, through this constitution, derives its powers, legitimacy and authority.”
The Chief Electoral Commissioner, Mohamed Kenewui Konneh and his team of commissioners will have to answer critical questions in a court of law for stealing election results in favour of the ruling party.
Authorities in the Political Parties Regulation Commission (PPRC), the courts and other election management bodies also will be humbled in various courts of law for alleged election irregularities.
The choice is therefore in the hands of President Bio that he either steps aside for another President, Certainly, Samura Kamara to implement the tripartite recommendations or retain the power and lose MCC money.
It is clear that if such choice is presented to President Bio, he would not hesitate to choose the latter as the move will see him in power despite ongoing controversies and political challenges in the country. Many say Bio does not care if the people including South-Easterners perish as long he is on the driving seat.
A popular argument holds that government officials fear arrest and prosecution for most of the atrocious crimes committed for the past six years. The trend still continues although the fear still persists.
Although the election is not free and fair, President Bio wanted to stay in power at all cost as seen in the number of tactics and ploys adopted by government.
One of the most popular ploys is to plunge Sierra Leone into persistent electricity blackouts or power outages so that the international community would come in to salvage the situation.
It was in 2000 during SLPP of President Tejan Kabba that Sierra Leone was branded the darkest country in the world. The same situation has returned to Sierra Leone.
It is under President Bio’s watch that Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown is branded the darkest city again after 23 years with the disturbing noise of rickety electricity generators heard all over the air.
It is also not unusual to see light goes off during meetings, press conferences, seminars and workshops, an uncomfortable situation for the people of Sierra Leone and even development partners.
About a month ago, opposition parliamentarians held a press briefing at APC office in Freetown to discuss the energy crisis that has plagued Sierra Leone.
It did not take too long after the press conference that the MCC board approved the grant to improve the energy situation in the country.
The electricity blackouts syndrome is self-created as government cancelled the Karpowership agreement through which Sierra Leone used to enjoy reliable energy supply.
But, there is a clear caveat in the struggle to get the MCC grant as the money would be not to the hands of government, but in another agency that would bolster the electricity situation in the country.
Government’s tactics to source the MCC grant is also seen in the proliferation of drugs in the country particularly ‘Kush’ that led to the declaration of a narco-state.
Government also failed in this attempt as the international community did not do much owing to the funding cut imposed on the government of Sierra Leone as a result of the election rigging.
The struggle to get the MCC money and other forms of international assistance started several years back as seen in the declaration of a state of emergency for sexual violence especially sexual penetration.
The announcement of a state of emergency in early 2019 for sexual crimes meant Sierra Leone was been branded a ‘rape state’ and the international community had to stand with government by way of financial cooperation.
Sierra Leone’s first lady, Fatima Bio also played host to several first ladies in West Africa during the launch of the ‘Hands Off Our Girls’ project in Freetown.
More ploys are sure come to ensure that MCC board releases the money, but it will be difficult for President Bio to achieve his aim as many say he holds and exercises a “stolen mandate.”
In spite of the few challenges, Bio has not given up its chase of the MCC compact as he needs money to run a cash-trapped government. However, some senior SLPP politicians in the diaspora have seen the MCC money as a bait for Bio calling on him to seek other options and sources.
It was the MCC compact that lulled President Bio to take part in the peace dialogue which gave birth to the Tripartite Committee which had been in a thorn in the flesh of government all this while.
The compact also lured the President into launching the Tripartite Committee at State House meaning he had committed himself to the election probe and would implement any recommendations made by the election investigators.
Now the investigation has been completed, and 80 recommendations submitted apart from five which are still being looked into by the judge. It is also clear that the MCC money will be used for Bio to implement the recommendations at his own peril as only time will tell.