By Ragan M. Conteh
As allegations of parliamentary corruption continue to make headlines, Speaker of parliament says parliament is not corrupt.
“The allegations against the law-making institution are baseless and unfounded,” the Speaker, Dr Abass Bundu says in a press release.
He referred to the actions of the NGO community as one that is equal to treason in light of the status of parliament.
He also noted that the sample used to arrive at the conclusion of corruption of parliament as the is too weak to make such a “generalised claim.”
The hot responses were directed at a study conducted by a consortium of three Non-Governmental Organisations: Centre for Accountability and Rule of Law, Restless Development and Christian Aid.
The study which was funded by the Department For International Development (DFID) tagged parliament as the second most corrupt public institution in Sierra Leone.
Considering its damaging effect, the allegation does not go down well with parliament which fires back.
Before parliament could recover from the wounds inflicted by the DFID-sponsored study, another corruption survey done by Afro-Barometre also accused parliament as the “second most corrupt agency.”
Afro-Barometre is an institution specialised in corruption and other governance issues in Africa, and it has the Institute of Governance Reform as it its fixer in the country.
The two reports produce a cumulative effect that considerably undermines parliamentary authority in Sierra Leone.
Almost every Sierra Leonean expects the best from parliament and respects its authority as the supreme law-making institution.
Parliament occupies a proud status in the governance machinery of the state.
It is empowered by the country’s highest law, the 1991 constitution, to make laws for the peace, security and good governance of the state.
With such a revered duty, no gainsaying that much has been given to parliament and to whom much is given, much is expected from.
However, other sectors of the Sierra Leonean society have joined parliament in condemning the corruption allegations made by the two corruption watchdogs.
A local rights activists who spoke on condition anonymity made it clear that parliamentarians are not purse holders.
Parliament, he says, exists to provide oversight on Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA’s) that hold and dispose of state finances.
“It is the executive arm that made attempts to corrupt parliament in most situations,” he said.
Attempts at bribing parliamentarians usually flare up when MDA’s face parliament in respect of how they manage funds allocated to their institutions.
It is also clear that year in and year out, MDA’s submit haphazard documents of their expenditure with no supporting documents to properly account for monies allocated to them.
What is more thorny in parliament, over the years, those MDA’s in whose hands the people’s money have been entrusted are found guilty of corruption.
But, action to investigate and deter them is never initiated by parliament, and they enjoy a field day.
Most, if not all, MDA’s, in their attempt at chopping monies, walk in the dark to influence some MP’s to approve their budgets.
The claim may contain an element of truth when one reflects on recent action taken by some parliamentarians to ensure that the right thing is done.
In such reflection, Honourable Ibrahim Tawa Conteh of the Ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party deserves a particular mention.
Hon Conteh who represents a key constituency in Freetown is known to have resigned from the post of Chairman of Transparency and Accountability Committee when his duty was allegedly interfered with.
Other parliamentarians are also known to have embarked on similar actions.
However, action to ensure probity in public service has been seriously undermined since parliament is constrained with funds to do their oversight.
In most parliamentary debates, the issue of limited funding has come up as a factor that frustrates parliamentarians to effectively perform their duties.
Constraint on parliamentary funding is a recurrent phenomenon apparently without a solution.
It is clear that parliamentarians continue to face pressure from their constituencies for various forms of development projects in their communities.
Personal help and offers can also not be ruled out as parliamentarians are most times tasked by their constituencies as a pay back.
The situation is much more worrisome in communities overshadowed by illiteracy and ignorance.
It is incontrovertibly clear that in most communities in Sierra Leone, the dark thought that parliament is in control of resources is still prevalent.
Parliamentarians, most times, are subjected to harassment for help more than ministers are.
A member of parliament, name withheld, has told nightwatch that sometimes he had cause to sacrifice his salary to “please his people.”
The other side of the argument has it that parliamentarians create such a situation as they make several promises during campaigns.
They hardly tell the truth to the electorate they that are not purse holders as their main function is law-making and oversight.
It is however natural as no politician would defeat himself on the backdrop of lack of resource in the presence of a rival.
The bane of shortage of funds for development projects in constituencies is compounded by meagre salaries paid to parliamentarians.
No gainsaying that the emolument seen as a take home package for parliamentarians cannot take them home.
Comparatively, records seen by nightwatch has shown that Liberian members of parliament are paid more than their Sierra Leonean counterparts.
A Liberian MP earns a monthly salary hovering between USD$5, 200 and USD$5,900 and a new salary is also being considered.
On the other hand, a Sierra Leonean MP gets Le20Million equivalent to USD$2,000 as his take home package.
The gap is too huge, and signs for improvement in salaries for Sierra Leonean MP’s are extremely faint.
A credible source has told nightwatch that Representative of Monsterrado County, Abraham Darius Dillion recently disclosed that Liberian senators are offered USD$15, 325 as incentives.
“Senators get USD$2,200 as gasoline and US$D500 per month for constituency visit,” the source informed nightwatch.
Sierra Leone Parliament is answerable and accountable to the people of Sierra Leone from whom government through the constitution derives its powers, legitimacy and authority.
Its members are the least paid in the sub-region, but says it has kept the fight for improved conditions at low profile owing to the cries of economic meltdown.
Parliament considers the cries of the people in light of the rough economic realities although it has power under section 74 (4) of the constitution to determine its own conditions of service.
Parliament is known to have been conducting its business at committee and plenary level in full view of the public, and most times, streamed live on radio and television.
The law-making institution, quite recently, expunged a certain section in the Finance Act of 2020, a law that provides for non-accountable imprest for the President, Vice President and Speaker of Parliament.
These actions, in totality, parliamentarians say keep parliament safe from corruption.