By Sall Tee Jay
Sierra Leone government can’t do without the appointment of Press Attaches. By the look of things, the second term of President Bio has seen so much noise that everyone is now yearning to become Press Attache’, thanks to the previous APC-led Government of Ernest Bai Koroma, who put smiles on the faces of journalists by appointing over 12 journalists to serve as Press Attaches’ in our foreign missions and embassies.
To date, we now know the significance behind that office. During the days of Late President Ahmad Kabbah, only few people were appointed to serve as Press Attache’. By then, the SLPP-led government of President Kabbah appointed Sorie Fofana to serve as Press Attache in the United Kingdom, and another senior journalist to serve in another country. Sorie Fofana did his best in projecting that office. It was as a result of the good work of people like Sorie Fofana that paved the way for journalists to enjoy and benefit hugely under the leadership of Ernest Bai Koroma.
During the ten years of EBK, Press Attaches’ like John Baimba Sesay, Ojuku Sesay, Sorie Sudan Sesay, Pasco Temple, Umar Jah, et al were among the prominent journalists marketing Sierra Leone to the world. Because of their tremendous work, most of them were reappointed to serve for another term. We saw how Sierra Leone became an investment spot, to the extent that foreign companies were coming to invest like manner from heaven.
When President Bio took office in 2018, the ‘Paopa Government had wanted to discourage the idea of appointing Press Attache’. Times SL Newspaper took the lead to let the ‘Paopa Government know that you can’t run a government without appointing seasoned journalists as Press Attaches to promote your activities in the international sphere. How will Sierra Leoneans living in other countries tell their stories if there are no Press Attaches? Truth be told, President Bio was able to listen to some of the concerns we raised and therefore encouraged the appointment of Press Attaches to continue. There were ministers in the first term of President Bio, who wanted that appointment for relatives and friends forgetting that during the days of struggle at the SLPP, there were journalists who were doing the dirty job of marketing President Bio.
In as much as I am not against the idea of appointing new people, it should also be noted that those who did well during their two and half years’ tenure as Press Attaches, should be compensated for their good work. These are people whose work are visible in almost every newspaper. They are always on top of situation to market the Bio government; despite the challenges they faced or went through. Even though others have been doing well in their different assignments, one would not disagree that there were top notch Press Attaches who did extremely well within the last two and half years. Now that President Bio has commenced his second term, we have been hearing new names of people who are not even journalists and want to occupy those offices. We must also not lose sight of the fact that it is good for the Bio government to bring in new people, just like what he did in his cabinet of young folks, but also, those Press Attaches who did well should be retained whilst opportunity should also be created for some senior SLPP journalists, whose work and footprints are all over on social and traditional media. In our opinion, the caliber of these SLPP journalists who have not benefited from appointment to that noble office, should be considered. These have held the fort in Sierra Leone, displaying unwavering commitment and true love to President Bio and the party.
The common saying that a man will not cry with you throughout the night and in the morning, you ask him why his eyes are red. These pushers of the pen have devoted their time and energy to promote the party and government they love, and should be remembered for their commitment and loyalty. His Excellency once said in a Town hall meeting in Freetown that he is ready to work with people that he trusts, and the stance of the aforementioned could not otherwise be construed. These journalists are not only au fait with the government’s agenda, but have the capacity and finesse to articulate them accordingly.