JOB – A liability? On whom?

I have told the story before which was attributed to former President Harry S. Truman who succeeded Franklin Roosevelt as the 33^rd. President of the United States of America from 1945 to 1953. He asked his advisers, “If a dog’s tail becomes a leg how many legs has the dog?” They all gave the answer FIVE and Truman replied “No! the dog still has four legs. Calling a tail a leg doesn’t make it one.” (Photo: Dr. Sama Banya)

The deputy minister of Information and Communication is quoted in none other but the New Citizen newspapers as saying that John Benjamin the national chairman of the opposition SLPP was a liability. The question is a liability on whom, the APC or the SLPP? The minister was commenting on the New Year Message of the opposition leader in which among other things he made mention of the GST, its timing and its impact on an already impoverished people under the atmosphere of the current economic downturn in the country and its management by this government. The honourable deputy minister adds with a note of sarcasm that the GST was initiated by the erstwhile SLPP government who were afraid to implement it  She went further to assert that it was because of that that the donor community withdrew all support to that government.

What the community services did the SLPP government fail to deliver? Did it fail to pay salaries on time or did it leave the kitty empty? Did the government then go cap in hand begging its partners for a resumption of those subsidies?

The honourable minister was silent on those questions. Of course we were aware that the action was part of the donors’ ploy to effect regime change which would have failed miserably but for the treacherous action of the chairman of the National Electoral Commission, NEC who invalidated the voting results in 477 polling stations in mostly recognized SLPP strongholds. Because the APC is disappointing them that is the reason the same donor community has had the effrontery to appeal directly over the head of the government directly to the people.

As I asked the other day where else would they have the audacity to do that, certainly not in Zimbabwe or even in the small Republic of Gambia.

I have in the last week read several opinions on the GST; it is fair to say that apart from government functionaries, even its most ardent advocates make reference to its implementation and to a still lack of proper understanding by those who will be most affected by it, that is the consumers; what then was so wrong with JOB suggesting that the matter be further discussed? Does that warrant or justify the honourable to refer to the leader of the opposition  as a liability? I must say with the utmost respect to the honourable lady that it is apparent that she has a limited understanding of the particular word.

The ruling APC are certainly giving their junior partners the PMDC who helped them to victory a hard time. Some three or more months ago, certainly not too long after their Kenema convention, Dauda Tombo Bangura and his supporters declared for the APC. People like Benson Suwu of Kenema had done so much earlier. But trust the tactics of my friends in the APC; the thing had to be dramatized for effective impact on their partners and so the proceedings were repeated in grand style in the Bai Bureh hall in Port Loko in the presence of the honourable Vice President and Party dignitaries. As the saying goes, with partners like the APC does the PMDC need opponents? .Not to be outdone the PMDC counters that they are registering new members on a daily basis. Some comfort indeed!

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