The Politics of Regionalism
The voting pattern exhibited in the past 2012 and 2007 general elections clearly indicates the wide regional divide characterizing our political system. While an overwhelming majority of the North-Western region voted for the ruling All Peoples Congress (APC), a majority of the South-East voted for the main opposition Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP).
If you hail from the North-West and wish to surely win a parliamentary seat, the best you can do is to join the APC and if you are from the South-East, join the SLPP. It has become our political culture to identify South-Easterners with the SLPP and North-Westerners with the APC.
But the most ironical part of it is that the SLPP, which has now colonized the South-East, hailed from the North while the APC, which is predominant in the North hailed from the Southern district of Moyamba from where came its founding father, Siaka Probyn Stevens.
The regional divide that has characterized our political system is not good for our young democracy; the fact that the two main parties, APC and SLPP have aligned themselves to regions is a major factor that is promoting the wide regional divide.
There are certain areas in the South-East where the SLPP has become a religion the opposition of which is tantamount to blasphemy for which one can be banished. On the other hand, there are some areas in the North where opposing the APC is a taboo for which one could be stoned to death.
The prevailing politics of regionalism has caused us to be losing prospective good leaders who are often voted against due to their regional background irrespective of whatever good virtues such people may have. Inversely, the regional politics has led to a mushrooming of inept leaders who are voted for not because of their capability but because they hail from a particular region and belong to the corresponding party.
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