Islamist insurgency: Where is Sierra Leone?
It will be somehow vague to suggest that Islamist insurgence, which is gradually taking a dangerous foothold on the African continent, has had or will have a direct impact on Sierra Leone. We cannot at this early stage prematurely harbour fears that such will soon happen. But like it is said in our local parlance, we must adopt the ‘kip tik behen doe’ security strategy; that is, we have to be vigilant, as a nation. (Photo: Adeyemi Paul, author and SEM CEO)
Recently, no less a person than the President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama raised the dust over what many would regard as sounding the alarm bell. In a recent BBC interview, the Ghanaian leader warned that ‘Islamist militancy poses a threat that could destabilize the whole of West Africa’. This statement could not be far from the truth, giving the rapid spread of terrorist movements across the continent.
Practically every day, Nigeria fights battles with the Boko Haram sect in predominantly Muslim north of the country; the Al Shabaab terrorists in Somalia and the threat they pose in eastern Africa, with Kenya sharing the brunt of the insurgency; the Al Qaeda movement in the troubled states of northern Africa, providing cover for the Tuaregs in northern Mali are all clear indications that Africa as a continent is under siege by Islamist militancy.
And like the Ghanaian leader succinctly put it, ‘no country is safe if the insurgency is allowed to take hold elsewhere’ even though his country, as he put it, was not directly affected for now.
Sierra Leone like Ghana is a peaceful country. Her citizens do not foresee any possible incursion by terrorists as it obtains in Nigeria or elsewhere. In the same vein, Sierra Leone cannot easily be classified as a country with tangible western interests, which are often targets for these militants, or a country that provides fertile ground for terrorist activities. In fact, the country’s socio-cultural make up, with its unique sense of religious tolerance, where Muslims and Christians freely interact freely inter-marry, Islamist tendencies are a far off dream, possibly not in the near future.
However, society is generally a dynamic unit. We are not living on an island, but rather we live in an unpredictable world. Whoever knew that a once peaceful country like ours would taste the bitterness of a rebel war that brought wanton destruction to life and property?
Apparently, in a country where mass unemployment, especially among the youthful population is a huge challenge; where social discontent arising from political marginalization among some section of the population is a recipe for social unrest, and where poverty has taken root in the economic lifeline of majority of Sierra Leoneans, anything could happen.
But like the President of Ghana said it, we cannot wait until it happens. Sierra Leone must start to strategize, if they have not done so already. In other words, no country is safe in the face of radical movements that soon generate into terrorism. Most of these movements came into being amidst mass unemployment, mass poverty, and wide spread injustice. And as a country, Sierra Leone is not free of these challenges.
So, the earlier we plan for the unexpected the better. A stitch in time saves nine.
Stay with Sierra Express Media, for your trusted place in news
© 2013, https:. All rights reserved.
