By Allieu Sahid Tunkara
At the frontage of Foamex factory at Calaba Town, east of Freetown, stands a splendid building painted red with the sun as its symbol, known for years, as the ‘Rising Sun.’
Happy-looking youths converge and comfort themselves with games of various sorts notably, ‘Draff’ as it is known in Sierra Leone. The building is the main opposition, All People’s Congress (APC) ‘Ataya Base.’
The base occupies a hot spot at Calaba Town; the atmosphere there is a bit cool and serene and prides itself with a tiled floor. A DSTV is hanged on the wall where the youths gather to watch both local and international matches free of charge. Thanks to individual contributions of APC members.
At the back of the building, a giant water tank is erected there. Guma Valley Water Company supplies them water which the base sells to the public. This is a complete business sense displayed by an ‘Ataya base,’ the like of which could hardly be seen anywhere in the country. Most Calaba Town residents converge at the water point to fetch water. The worthwhile water service makes the APC ‘Ataya Base’ an attractive point for the community since water is precious to life.
At the main entrance, women selling different food stuff are visible with their red ‘polo’ T-shirts as corporate identity. Different people visit the centre to refresh themselves after the day’s toil. It is an attractive point for any passer-by.
The APC ‘Ataya Base’ is headed by a chairman known as Ernest Koroma, the names the chairman carries endears him to the youths of the base. However, Baba Jalloh is one of the founding members of the base. He sells ‘Ataya’ drink there daily and youths buy from him. He said he started selling there since the building came into existence. Narrating an historical background about the red base, Jalloh said since they formed the group to support the main opposition, they used to converge at the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP)‘Ataya Base’ where they discussed issues of the day.
But, Jalloh said, the SLPP members were not satisfied with their presence and the APC discussions that had overshadowed the SLPP discussions there. “The SLPP members did not want to hear APC discussions in their base. Therefore, they were not happy with that,” Jalloh explained. Since we have an unwavering love for the party, Jalloh went on we decide to put up the ‘Ataya Base’ where we can enjoy comfortable APC discussions. “The APC Ataya base is open to all categories of people; we encourage anyone to enjoy solace there including SLPP members. It is a fantastic showcase of political tolerance that should characterize the body politic of any country.
The beauty of the base, according to Jalloh, lies at the hay days of the APC during which time the base was constructed. “We put up structure at the time APC was in governance. We had enough money at that time,” Jalloh recounted. However, he narrated to Nightwatch that at the time the building was erected, they already had a clue that they were going out of power at the time. The heart burning suspicion, at the time, compelled them to have such an edifice so that by the time they would have left power, the monumental edifice would console them.
Similarly, the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) ‘Ataya Base’ stands directly opposite to the Last Station Lorry Park at Calaba Town also in the east of Freetown. Commuters heading for Freetown central converge at the park to catch vehicles to convey them to their various destinations. The location of SLPP ‘Ataya Base’ makes it attention-catching. The base is beautified with the portraits of the President, the Vice president and the former Minister of Works and Public Assets, Desmond De Souza George, aka Papa Ray. The Cotton Tree at the Signpost reminds onlookers and the passers-by of the traditional and culturally sensitive nature of the SLPP.
However, Life at the SLPP base is low-key compared to the opposition Ataya Base. The former lacks basic facilities that can attract more youths. The base is virtually deficient in television facilities, water, comfortable sitting accommodation and many others that make life social and worth living. It is no gainsaying that the base is dull and boring and the youths are almost always in bitter arguments in respect of the fair allocation of the resources the base generates. Allegations and counter-allegations of dishonesty are dominant in their discussions.
It is incontrovertible that ‘Ataya Bases’ are centres of political discussions. Over the years, the bases have achieved fame for the initiation of political ideologies for the consumption of the wider community- the country. The discussions of those bases portray the stance political parties want to adopt.
Few months back, the Honourable Member of Parliament for the constituency paid a short visit to the APC ‘Ataya Base’ with a strong message. The message is that of radicalizing the party considering the “brutality” and “humiliation” the party members had suffered in the hands of the ruling party members. “The peaceful politics of Former President Koroma is over. The APC now adopts the Politics of S.I. Koroma and Siaka Stevens. It is now the way to go,” the MP directed.
This radical politics pronounced by the MP came to characterize the recent stance the APC has adopted as its political philosophy. The party no longer tolerates “intimidation” or “brutality” from the ruling party. “The opposition is now ever ready to put up the stiffest resistance against any form of brutality that came from any angle,” the MP said. This is a great testament that ‘Ataya bases’ are reservoirs of political ideologies that the rank and file will waste no time to follow as long it comes from a party stalwart.
Most party stalwarts using the highway would not hesitate to stop momentarily and visit the centres with lofty promises to thrill the youths there. The visits, most times, are usually characterized by the dishing out of gifts to the chairmen and other personalities to maintain the loyalty of the youths to the party. But, most times, the promises made by stalwarts are hardly fulfilled. The arguments and skirmishes at the bases could not be divorced from the unfulfilled promises.
The SLPP is in governance and strengthening their ‘Ataya bases’ would go a long way to consolidate their political stay as the party would be marketed to a great many people.