By Amara Thoronka
With a painstaking and logical observation of the enthusiasm and obsession of many Sierra Leoneans in supporting their political parties, especially the oldest and most dominant parties since the country’s independence in 1961 – the ruling Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP) and the main opposition All Peoples Congress (APC) party, it is logically prudent to assert that political party patronage is perceived as an inheritance. The exclusive emphasis on the aforementioned political parties is deliberate because there is yet a resolved commitment to unseat them in the country’s political arena.
“I will forever remain APC or SLPP because it is the party of my father,” is a common phenomenal expression in their lips of party members or supporters who most often describe themselves as “born and die-hearted supporters.” For such people [arguably constituting the majority of electors] political parties are intravenous, cardiovascular, bloodline and treasury usually patriarchally inherited. Thus, they live with the mythical obligation of promoting the protecting the ideologies and interests of these parties with blood, sweat and tears. There are those who conceive, hatch or orchestrate mayhem on the pretext of propagating the interests of their fathers’ parties.
It is no secret that some parents release curses on their children if they decide to support opposing parties to theirs. Such parents raise their children to be intolerant to other parties and have little or no reverence for anyone not supporting them. This politics by inheritance is evident in the political dispensation of the country; and it is a catalyst for socio-political vices.
One offspring of such inherited patronage is blind loyalty. This is a situation when someone becomes so loyal to a party to an extent that he/she cannot distinguish between bad and good. In such a situation, everything the party does – whether in governance or opposition – is fine and good. It makes people to become slaves to their conscience. Even when the conscience beacons for the right thing to be done or said, the contrary will mostly be manifested in consonance with the party’s interest. This metaphorical blindness renders a person so myopic not to see anything beyond party lines.
Politics by inheritance makes people to be haters of constructive criticisms even when such criticisms are for unification, growth and development of the country. Because parties are perceived as priceless and adorable inheritance, the only thing they considered truthful is that which favours the interests of their parties. They are willing and ready to hunt down, mouthwash and vilify anybody who expresses an apt nationalistic view that is considered to be against the wellbeing of their parties. People who are uncompromising with the truth are mostly enemies to people who are obsessed with inherited party politics.
The sacrosanct practice of politics by inheritance promotes tribalism and regionalism. People who are born to parents from certain tribes and regions are indoctrinated to imbibe the culture of supporting a particular political party till death. Most of the members of the Themne and Limba tribes predominantly in the north-west of the country have been brainwashed to blindly and religiously support the main opposition APC party; while those of the Mende and Sherbro tribes have been indoctrinated such support for the ruling SLPP. This tribal and regional politics can be vividly seen in electoral statistics and the occupancy of influential and crucial governance offices.
This genre of politics encourages and upholds political protectionism. This is where certain proponents of such political attachment are protected by the powers that be. This are the people that will engage in financial and professional improprieties but will however be placed under the protective and impenetrable canopy of the political echelons. Discipline such individuals is considered by some political lords or godfathers as disinheriting them.
In addition, people make uninformed and unproductive decisions because they are preoccupied with the interests of their parties, thus making or taking decisions that gives their parties edge over others. The incumbent is preoccupied with what to do maintain power, while the opposition preoccupation is to unseat the incumbent and gain political power. At this point, some people don’t mind taking lives, telling blatant lies, maliciously assassinating the hard-earned reputation of people; destroying valuable assets and doing anything humanly possible but nationalistically erroneous just to advance and realise the ultimate goal of their inheritance [political parties].
Moreover, there is a love for evil and a lack of interest for good. You will see people glorifying public officials belonging to their parties who have been proven to have embezzled State funds because such conviction or revelation is mostly viewed as an affront to their party members. They call those found culpable of State thievery as their thieves and some will be willing to sacrifices their lives in protecting such people. While in governance everything is rosy or developing, but while in opposition almost everything is bad and unproductive.
Furthermore, there is the politicisation of national institutions meant to formulate and enforce sustainable development at local and national levels. In successive governments, people who hold executive positions in a political party have mostly been given the top positions in ministries, departments and agencies. Those officials would now have to perform both national and party functions due to their dual capacities. Is this not a room for inefficiency? The two capacities compete for time and commitment. Officials would tend to be more loyal to their parties because it is the party that caused them to hold those national positions of trust. Many pundits and observers on good governance and development have been advising for those holding top executive positions in parties not to be appointed in top State positions to have a clash of national and party functions. But however, government seems not to be paying any attention in that direction as such party stalwarts are considered to be enjoying their inheritance.
Also, it has caused a decline in patriotism and an astronomic increase in partisanism. To those people who practice inherited political patronage, the interests of their political parties override that of the nation. Sierra Leone is a secondary consideration. After 59 years of independence the nation still experiences abject and unbearable poverty, inadequacies in social amenities, corruption and many more. Amidst such bad condition, politicians have been getting richer while the country continues to wallow in impoverishment and deficiencies.
For the country to grow, the electorate should elect people to positions of truth not on sentimental consideration but on the basis of competence, integrity and a proven tract record. And when such people are elected to office, they must be put on their toes to deliver their manifesto promises. They should be seen as servants and not masters. Those who support blindly should know that most politicians are comfortable and financially independent. Their children are schooling overseas and their families are living a luxurious live. You are out there struggling to survive but you are willing to fight for and defend them in all circumstances, even in corruption.
Political party is not an inheritance but one conduit to serve humanity. Political or electoral decisions should be informed by our conscience and not our emotions. Be wise!
