Streets in Freetown have persistently seen police and military officers armed with AK-47, 58, Glock-17 pistols, Baton Guns (Teargas Weapons) and Self-Loaded Rifles. Unrestrained heavy-handedness of the police and army personnel signals violence in society and can scare away potential and actual investors from Sierra Leone.
Investment is no match to aid, grants and loans. The development of any nation is contingent on the nature of investment the country receives from within and outside. Needless to say investment would not come in the midst of the barrels of the gun. The carrying of the weapons portrayed as those putting up a show of strength to forestall imminent attacks.
A senior police officer has made it clear that it is a form of robust beat patrol to make the city safe.
The patrols, he said, came after commercial motorists (Okada Riders) wanted to hold the city hostage. The riders were banned from plying the Central Business District of Freetown. Regardless of whatever arguments from the security men, armed police and military creates fear in members of the public.
It also portrays the country as one not at peace within herself. Most Sierra Leoneans hold the view that the country is slowly moving towards violence. The violence is caused, nurtured and nourished by deep political divisions in the country. The divisions have long permeated much of Sierra Leonean life and now threaten the future of almost every Sierra Leonean.
A local civil society activist has argued that pursuing rapid police deployment and heavy handedness breeds polarisation of Sierra Leonean society, and ultimately, the destruction of basic democratic values. The polarisation of the Sierra Leonean society rests on endemic and sporadic violence with the police always on the offensive side.
But, a clear view is that violence, either from the security side or members of the public, does not build a better society. Violence strikes hard at the freedom of every citizen. Sierra Leone is known for peace after the civil war (1991-2002) and cannot now tolerate conflicts and mob rule.
Deep-rooted poverty, economic hardship, marginalisation and several restrictions on individual freedoms and liberty have created a destructive environment unknown to police and political authorities.
What the police cannot and have not fully understood is that, they are seriously indicted in the streets for brutality and violation of basic rights.
Despite the allegations, the police have always maintained that they are fighting disorder and lawlessness.
On the other hand, the police have been accused of creating, maintaining and condoning the conditions for violence. The spiralling violence has compelled some Sierra Leoneans calling on government that it is now time to turn with all-purpose at the nation’s command to securitise the streets.
Public opinion holds that the choice for peace is still possible. The principal task is to define that choice and press for a national resolution. The sacrifice for peace is not an alternative to blind repression or capitulation to lawlessness. It is about building a society of equal opportunities for all without distinction of any kind.
The alternative will require a commitment to action for peace and security so that Sierra Leone can move from the doldrums of poverty and under-development. Despite fine resolutions and suggestions held by many Sierra Leoneans, violence and heavy police deployment continues.
Violence and heavy deployment of police and military began in Sierra Leone immediately after the 2018 presidential and parliamentary elections. A previous interview with a veteran politician indicated the violence is about competing interests among politicians.
The competition, he said, was not in the country’s interest but individuals’.
He opines that Sierra Leone is slowly degenerating to conflict of higher scale if authorities fail to take steps to nip it in the bud.
He however does not believe using a large contingent of police and military officers on the streets, but other peaceful methods. He said the presence of armed security operatives breeds intimidation and harassment adding that any response from communities would lead to violence of incalculable margin. He also discountenances the use of armed police to prevent violence in the streets.
Other subtle methods, he said existed, and government could make use of them to maintain peace.
The politician made the analysis from an investment perspective. He strongly believes that no matter how prudently government pursues policies for sound investment, It would be very difficult for it to succeed if the investment environment remains tense.
He further argues that it is an arms-free environment that nurtures sound investment. No doubt, Sierra Leone badly needs credible investors to create jobs and stimulate a stagnated economy. In most conferences, government always says the country is now ready for business and investment.
In 2019, during an investment conference at State House in Freetown, Head of Presidential Initiative on Infrastructure at State House, Dr John Tambie told investors that Sierra Leone was an investment destination. He made this assurance at a time he was holding discussions with foreign investors in respect of the construction of the Lungi Bridge.
If materialised, the construction project would have created thousands of jobs for jobless youths. In another investment workshop at Aberdeen in Freetown, the Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources also reiterated government’s stance towards investment.
The Minister, Timothy Kabba told participants that the Mines Ministry is undergoing major reforms to attract foreign direct investment.
“I am working very hard to revamp the mining sector,” he assured.
The Minister’s deep commitment to sound investment in the mines and minerals sector could not be divorced from the sector’s great contributions to the national economy.
“It is the bread basket of the country’s economy,” he said.
Quite recently, over 50 African-Americans were in Sierra Leone to explore areas for investment. The tourism sector apparently appears an investment attraction to the Americans who seemed ready to invest.
Sierra Leone has simplified its once cumbersome for business registration protocols and operations.
Tax holidays for close to six months are offered to new businesses at the start of operations.
The showcase of Sierra Leone to investors means Sierra Leone is showing signs of migration from aid to trade.
But, arguments hold that the migration would be hindered by the presence of heavily armed police and military officers. Their presence paints a picture of a fragile peace in a volatile environment.