*Corruption – 0%
*Financial Leakages – 0%
*Indiscipline – 0%
*Lawlessness – 0%
*Football – 30%
It has long been laid to rest that the New Direction government of President Julius Maada Bio has lost the war on corruption, financial leakages, indiscipline and lawlessness. We are well aware of the issues that have transpired during the past three years under the SLPP stewardship of the Government of Sierra Leone. Without going into details, the war was lost because President Bio has failed to show his seriousness to fight the above war by failing to clean his own house, as he is actively pursuing members of the previous regime.
But despite losing this very critical manifesto promise that is the bane of our development agenda, there is one manifesto promise that he has so far kept that is finally bearing the kind of fruit that we have come to expect as a nation, but was rarely getting. Yes, with just a little bit of focus and effort, President Bio can do it and ensure we go all the way.
Sierra Leone is a football crazy country. Despite the years we have failed to capitalise on the progress made from 1993-96, Sierra Leoneans have always been hopeful that our national team, Leone Stars, would deliver the goods. It has taken 25 years, yet, just when we had thought all was lost, we were delivered by the grace of God to edge past Benin 1-0 to be the last team to qualify for the 2022 African Cup of Nations or AFCON slated for Cameroon.
For this achievement, it is not outside the realm of possibility to thank the President for Leone Stars’ success in qualifying for the AFCON after a 25 year drought. In his New Direction Manifesto, President Bio promised to revive football. The aim was to return Sierra Leone to its glory days of 1994-96 when we twice won the Zone II or Amilcar Cabral Cup and qualified for the 1994 and 1996 AFCON in Tunisia and South Africa respectively.
It must be recalled that the progress Sierra Leone football had started making between 93 and 96 was prematurely halted due to the civil war that ensued. Things got so bad for our football that during the entire Ernest Bai Koroma presidency, save for a few games played, no league football was played due to the issues that weighed down the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) under its embattled former President, Isha Johansen.
But true to his promise, President Bio revived the league. Were it not for the interruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sierra Leone football would have improved far from where it presently is. But despite COVID, our boys continued the momentum generated from the interest shown to the sector by President Bio. Apart from creating thousands of jobs for our youth (players, coaches, technical teams, etc.), we started seeing some tangible proof of the progress our national sporting teams have been making. Apart from football, we are seeing tangible gains in para-Olympic sports, cricket, basketball and the like. Young people now see football and sports as viable means of employment. This is very good for diversifying our national employment focus from the traditional professions of accounting, law, medicine, engineering and the like.
But now that we have qualified for the AFCON, have we arrived? Certainly not! Is it enough? Same answer. Can we do better? Yes, we can! For this we say, Bio can do it! After losing his flagship war on corruption, financial leakages, indiscipline and lawlessness, President Bio finally has a saving grace in football. Used effectively, President Bio could leverage the praises he is currently receiving from across the political divide for the dividends his focus on football has yielded.
Now that the team has qualified, we are foreseeing a problem that could act as a sabotage of this one thing that is unifying this already divided country: a winning football team. There are people within the sporting administration setup that are mixing sports and politics that will eventually sabotage the progress made so far. As a fist approach, President Bio should ensure that politics and football be separated.
As our boys actively prepare for AFCON in Cameroon, the President should come up with a team of administrators that love the game, not the position, fame or money associated with the game. We need people that have the team’s best interest at heart; people of high integrity, and with the right connections. The current leadership is seriously lacking in integrity and connections; all they are doing is making promises to you, but busy bringing politics into a game of talent.
Despite losing the above listed war, President Bio can still win the hearts and minds of the people by ensuring that Leone Stars go all the way to the finals. The team is very capable, but urgently needs the right people to direct its course. Anyone with a bit of sense in PAOPA can see what a great unifying force a winning football team is. Therefore, a winning football team can be a great campaign booster. Do this and the people will show their gratefulness to you in the ballot box. Fail at this as you have failed on the war on corruption, leakages, lawlessness and indiscipline, you can wave goodbye to State House come 2023. Lonta!