It is becoming clearer by the day that the numerous Communication Strategists at the Ministry of Information and Communications and State House are largely without a strategy to espouse on the strategic reforms that are ongoing within government with regards restoring international credibility to the once vulnerable economy.
In the last one month, credible international institutions and bilateral countries such as the World Bank and United States State Department have commended the government for pushing through requisite reforms around transparency and accountability management of the economy as they relate to procurement and increased revenue generation.
The World Bank’s recent mission to this country praised the continuous improvements in the National Revenue Authority and the National Public Procurement Authority, especially as they relate to the introduction of ITAS, E-Procurement price norms etc. which were long standing.
The introduction of these reforms has significantly led to an improvement in the country’s ratings from moderately satisfactory to satisfactory.
This without doubt has correspondingly led to increased donor support.
The recent signing of a concessional loan agreement between the Government of Sierra Leone through the Ministry of Finance with the Exim Bank of China was huge in terms of having a turn-around in the communication sector and the E-Government aspirations.
The agreement was also huge from the perspective that it was signed just under a 1% interest loan compared to the 2.5% which was the norm for most concessional loans.
Government was able to make huge successes in so far as the agreement is concerned.
The agreement would push through internet connectivity in most major towns in the country and also successfully roll out the fiber optic cables in the remaining towns and villages in Sierra Leone.
How about its impacts on the Free Quality Education and the Free Health Care schemes in the country?
It is expected to aid the connection of over 500 schools and almost all the referral hospitals in the regional headquarters towns in the country.
All of these are issues our own communication strategists should be able to propagate.
How comes that the argument around ‘Arata’ and the ‘Gron Dry’ are winning the public discourse rather than these beautiful and internationally endorsed reforms by government?
Radio stations and newspapers across the country are overwhelmed with propaganda against the government amidst all the international recommendations, concessional loans and beautiful agreements that are of no burdening to the economy and the people of Sierra Leone.
Nobody cares about what impacts these propaganda might have on the government.
How comes that certain people calling themselves Communication Strategists definitely have no strategy to promote the government’s agenda?
It was necessary to have maintained Lahai Lawrence Leema and Abubakar Joe Sesay with due respect to our colleagues in the team against the backdrop that these individuals have squarely faced the dreaded APC Communications team during the elections campaign.
These two gentlemen (Leema and Joe Sesay) conquered the APC propaganda with all the huge resources and paraphernalia at the behest of the APC.
Many times the numbers are not very much significant but the quality that such numbers exhibit in terms of performance is what matters.
The Communication Strategists should wake up from their slumber and devise strategies to counter propaganda.