Politicizing the Yenga issue
Yenga is a small settlement within the Sierra Leone territory. It has remained under Guinean occupation ever since the rebel war ended in Sierra Leone in 2002.
It was during the war when Guinean soldiers, in a calculated move to ward off rebel incursion into their territory, took defensive position in Yenga. That action paid off in so far as our war lasted. Guinea remained intact while our own war raged on.
The last government of former President Tejan Kabbah worked very hard to get the Guinean soldiers off our territory. We could not have achieved that through military engagement, bearing in mind Guinea’s military capability.
The then SLPP government had to use diplomatic means to free Yenga. To be fair with the last government, all genuine efforts were applied to remove the Guinean soldiers from our land, but working with a sick military leader who had transformed himself into a civilian president it was just too difficult to deal with the ailing General Lansana Conte.
Meanwhile, many Sierra Leoneans at home became impatient with Guinean authorities and viewed their prolonged military occupation as an act of provocation and an affront to the sovereignty of our nation.
Various stakeholders joined the campaign to free Yenga including civil society and womens groups, but to no avail. The Guineans stuck to their guns.
When the opposition All Peoples Congress (APC) party came into office following the 2007 elections there was massive hope of bringing back Yenga to her rightful place, Sierra Leone.
Sadly though, the Yenga issue suddenly died out. This government was conspicuously silent about it, not until recently that we were told our president, Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma visited his Guinean counterpart and part of their discussion was on Yenga.
The Guinean leader, Prof. Alpha Conde is the new president of that sister country. More than anything else, the Guinean leader would be very pleased to consolidate the brotherly ties that existed between the two countries.
That is why when he was elected president of that country many Sierra Leoneans would have loved receiving the new leader in our territory first rather us rushing to pay him a visit and even asking him for a few bags of rice.
However, having said so, we are glad that our own president took the initiative to visit him to demonstrate our love and respect for our Neighbours.
What is however disturbing is the misconception around the president’s visit in relation to Yenga. Already, either for lack of information or deliberate ploy to politicize the Yenga issue, some section of the APC membership is giving wrong interpretation of the visit.
Yenga has not been released to us yet, as a nation. This must be made clear. Negotiations are still ongoing. All of us would be happy the day Yenga is freed. But let us don’t make political capital out of the president’s effort.
Let us allow negotiations to continue between the sisterly countries on a healthy diplomacy and not on a propaganda platform. Lonta!
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