Constitutional Amendment Bill: President Bio: Prepare Your Bed Well for Retirement
By Kelvin Jay
History has never failed to remind successive Presidents of Sierra Leone about the consequences of the good and bad decisions they make while exercising state power. Political authority is temporary, but the consequences of Presidential decisions often outlive those who make them.
Former President Siaka Stevens, during his 17-year rule, took several controversial decisions that continue to attract criticism from historians and political observers. Among the most debated were the dismantling of the Sierra Leone Railway, the costly hosting of the 1980 Organisation of African Unity (OAU) Summit, and the introduction of the one-party state in 1978.
The destruction of the railway network weakened economic connectivity between the provinces and Freetown, while the enormous expenditure associated with the OAU Summit placed additional pressure on the country’s struggling economy. The one-party system, meanwhile, significantly weakened democratic competition and political accountability.
Stevens was surrounded by powerful political loyalists, businessmen and advisors. However, history shows that leaders who ignore dissenting voices and surround themselves only with people who tell them what they want to hear often leave behind controversial legacies.
During the presidency of Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, similar criticisms emerged about political advisers and party loyalists influencing key government decisions. Despite his achievements in rebuilding state institutions after the civil war, Kabbah’s administration was also criticised over allegations of selective accountability and the protection of politically influential figures.
Former President Ernest Bai Koroma also faced one of the most controversial decisions of his presidency when Vice President Samuel Sam-Sumana was removed from office in 2015.
The decision generated significant legal and political controversy, eventually reaching the ECOWAS Court. Several legal arguments were advanced by government officials and advisers in defence of the action, particularly regarding the constitutional requirement for the Vice President to belong to a political party.
Today, even some of those who once defended or celebrated controversial political decisions of the past have changed their positions or disappeared from the political circle of the leaders they once advised.
This should serve as an important lesson for President Julius Maada Bio.
President Bio, Tread Carefully
Mr. President, many people are today encouraging you to sign the Constitutional Amendment Bill. Some are offering sweet words and political assurances, but history teaches us that advisers and political supporters do not always remain when the consequences of controversial decisions begin to unfold.
The same enthusiasm and encouragement surrounded previous Presidents when they took decisions that later became subjects of national and international debate.
Former Attorney General and Minister of Justice Joseph Fitzgerald Kamara recently reflected on the removal of former Vice President Sam-Sumana in his interview on AVY’s State of the Nation Program hosted by Umaru Fofana, maintaining that although he was not Attorney General at the time of the dismissal, he had reservations about aspects of the decision.
Today, legal minds, including veteran lawyer Sulaiman Banja Tejan Sie, have raised concerns regarding the current Constitutional Amendment Bill and have urged caution.
Mr. President, listen not only to those who applaud you but also to those courageous enough to tell you the truth.
Power is temporary. The Presidency will one day come to an end, but the decisions taken today will remain part of Sierra Leone’s history.
Many of the people surrounding you today may not be there tomorrow. Some may not visit you, answer your calls or stand beside you when you eventually leave office. History has demonstrated this reality repeatedly.
The people who advised and celebrated former President Koroma during some of his most controversial decisions are not all around him today.
Therefore, President Bio, don’t be carried away by political pressure, praise or the voices of sycophants. Be carefully consider the legal, political and historical consequences of any decision concerning the Constitutional Amendment Bill.
Mr. President, use wisdom over pressure and conscience over political convenience. Do what is right, not merely what is popular today, because posterity will ultimately judge every decision you make.
