Despite calls to cut down public expenditure by having few ministers and heads of agencies, government still continues to balloon through the creation of new ministries and agencies in a manner that reflects a pay-back time. In the face of hardship, hardly a month passes by without President Julius Maada Bio appointing new ministers, deputies and heads of agencies to assist him run a cash-trapped government badly affected by legitimacy crisis.
New government officials including ministers are appointed to man the new offices, a move that calls for more money and resources to take care of the huge number of workers. After all, the masses are on the wrong end as they bear the brunt of any misuse of public money.
The establishment of more offices and the rapid appointment of public sector workers started in early 2018 following the declaration of Julius Maada Bio President of Sierra Leone, although it was a move SLPP politicians (Sierra Leone People’s Party) bitterly condemned when they were in opposition.
They were highly critical of the government of then President Ernest Bai Koroma who they accused of compensating mainly his Northern kinsmen through political patronages. The bloated government allegations was even captured by 2018 Governance Transition Team (GTT) report authored by Former Chief Minister, Professor David John Francis and top SLPP politicians.
The hardline criticisms made the people believe that the GREEN GUYS are up to the task, but their seeming hypocrisy was soon laid bare through indiscriminate appointments of SLPP members, supporters and sympathisers.
Such ministries as education, lands, agriculture and most recently information and communication were split into two calling for more finances to keep them up and running. New agencies were also created to compensate most of those who worked for the party in times of hardline and fanatic politicking.
Information and Communication Ministry was the recent to be divided into two after Julius Maada Bio was controversially re-elected for another term. It was after the separation of the two ministries that two different ministers were called to man the offices. Currently, the Information Ministry has Chernoh Bah as its head while Salima Bah leads the Communication Ministry with new personnel playing new roles but with little result.
The National Commission for Civic Education and Development (NACEED), a PAOPA creation came under the Information Ministry costing government millions for its administrative and field work. A law has been enacted to safeguard its continued existence even when the Bio regime shall have left power.
The recent de-amalgamation of the two ministries was really not a surprise for many Sierra Leoneans who had witnessed such move in the past. Ministry of Agriculture and Environment which used to be one entity has not been separated into two with the Ministry of Agriculture different from the Ministry of the Environment. Both have separate administrations, management activities and staff.
It is indisputable that having more ministries is a financially demanding venture as the right personnel have to be sought and employed to handle the new and complex tasks. Currently, Environment Protection Agency is being manned by a high profile politician, Dr Kandeh Kolleh Yumkella with more agencies set to be created in the short run.
The Education Ministry also seemed to have been trapped in a dance of destiny. It was a single ministry before this time with a minister. It was however split into two when PAOPA took over power in April, 2018 as the Ministry of Basic and Senior School Education is now different from the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education.
The separation led to a sudden change in the way the ministry carries out business as experts need to be employed to run the two ministries with high salaries and allowances. Separation of the two ministries was carried out amid wide public expectations that an education revolution was at hand especially when it was made a flagship project.
But, the result earned is not commensurate to the money spent as the PAOPA regime could not point at anything after a whooping sum of Le2bn has been reportedly spent on the project.
Other corporate entities also heavily invested in education since it was a human capital development initiative. Reports show that apart from the United States, several European countries put money in the education trust fund as it was an initiative to brighten the future of the young.
Almost invariably, other ministries which have been divided have succumbed to similar fate as the achievements remain scanty and sketchy in spite of an acute wastage of resources. Although there is presently an Environment Ministry and Environment Protection Agency, floods and other disasters still continue to threaten the country especially low income-earners who are in slum communities.
As the rains approach, disasters still confront Sierra Leone with some bound to occur again this year in spite of the level of preparedness government has put in place. Shortage of Rice and other vital food crops in the country also raise questions about the rationale behind the division as it only adds to government spending particularly at a time government is financially imbalanced. Money stopped flowing into Sierra Leone after June, 2023 polls which the international community (United States, United Kingdom, the United Nations, European Union, ECOWAS, African Union) have held back their funds from government until the polls are probed and findings and recommendations made public.
An Election Investigation Committee is currently in full swing and unless work is done, the arid financial situation will continue unabated since it is a stance taken by the international community particularly the United States. The Super World Power has made it clear to the Sierra Leonean authorities that no government agency would be financed until the investigation is done and recommendations implemented as provided by the October, 2023 Communique.
Former US Ambassador to Sierra Leone, David Reimer announced that his government would sponsor no development project in Sierra Leone except health which he said was about life. He stressed that the move was a position taken by the United States in respect of the allegedly rigged elections in Sierra Leone and nobody could change that position not even the incoming US Ambassador.
It was after the announcement of the funding cut that Sierra Leone lost the MCC (Millenium Corporation Challenge) compact which amounted to $750m and a World Bank grant of $250m. In all, Sierra Leone was deprived of such huge sum, (Le1bn) which would have made good impact on the economy especially at this crucial time.
The words of the ex-US diplomat still stand as the screws are being tightened every day, and the new US Ambassador, David Bryan Hunt appears more committed to the stance taken by his country now than at any time. In the face of more ministries and funding cut, government only manage to pay salaries and embark on small-scale development projects that is of little contribution to national development. Suffice it to say it is difficult for the authorities to provide much-needed social services in the absence of donor support.
Electricity, water supply and other essential services are the ones worst hit by the withdrawal of international support from Sierra Leone. As the last solution, President Bio has been visiting several countries especially China, its surest and most trusted partner after US, UK, France and other countries turned their backs against him owing to an alleged election fraud.
Recently, President Bio attended the China-African summit held in Beijing, China’s capital city where he earned just $7m, a real drop in the ocean. Sierra Leone’s economic problems are complex and multi-faceted demanding a complete overhaul of the economic system if she is to stand again on her feet.
It was recently reported that Sierra Leone needed about $4bn so that the economy could get back to where it was before 2018 when the exchange rate was good as the Leone was doing well, a 50kg bag of rice was NLe200 or Le200, 000 (two hundred thousand Leones), price of personal wearing as jean trousers was sold at NLe70 or Le70, 000 (seventy thousand Leones), the transport fare is fairly reasonable and prices of other goods and services remain as reasonable and affordable for men in the streets. Currently, Sierra Leoneans have seen a radical shift from a life of comfort to one of heavy toil and hardship.
A 50kg bag of rice hovers between Le800, 000 (eight hundred thousand Leones) and Le900, 000 (nine hundred thousand Leones) with fear that it could rise to Le1m (one million Leones) and above if the inflation is left unchecked. A price of jean trousers has skyrocketed from Le70, 000 to Le250, 000 (two hundred and fifty thousand Leones) representing over 100% increase in inflation.
The transport fare from the city to the provinces remains unbearable: a passenger heading to Kailahun could pay as much Le400, 000 (four hundred thousand Leones), about Le200, 000 (two hundred thousand Leones) for Kenema, Le150, 000 (one hundred and fifty thousand Leones) for Bo city, Le130, 000 (one hundred thousand Leones) for Makeni city and Le100, 000 (one hundred thousand Leones) for PortLoko town and the list continues.
Prices of other basic food stuff which will have been suitable alternatives to the staple crop also continue to hike with suffering of the people of Sierra Leone going on. Government coffer is reportedly going weak with government getting it difficult to solve the country’s economic problems, head-scratching for economic solutions has not ceased, but several questions keep coming.
Where will government get the amount of money need to solve the country’s economic problems? When will it come? What are government’s priority areas that the money will be spent? These questions remain the most frequently asked at the moment although answers are yet to come. But, the biggest question is when will the suffering of the common man come to end?