*FANS OF HON. DR. SYLVIA BLYDEN TURN PORT LOKO HALL UPSIDE DOWN WITH MASSIVE APPLAUSE - HER SUPPORT WAS ELECTRIC - SHE HAD TO BEG THEM TO STOP CLAPPING*
By Port Loko Media Alliance
Saturday July 30th 2016 was a unique day in Port Loko when the Honourable Minister of Social Welfare, Gender and Children's Affairs took the microphone to address the jampacked gathering at Port Loko District Council Hall.
Hon. Dr. Sylvia Olayinka Blyden has won fame in Sierra Leone for a series of reasons including many historical firsts for a Sierra Leone woman. One of the reasons for her huge popularity though, is her ability to fearlessly speak out. It was that ability that was on showcase in Port Loko.
Blyden was in Port Loko alongside His Excellency the President and all Cabinet Ministers plus the Head of the Civil Service and other local and international dignitaries. They were there to discuss the way forward in successfully executing the President's latest visionary programme: The Sierra Leone International Benchmarks System (SLIBS). Hon. Blyden as Minister leading the Social Welfare, Gender & Children's ministry has been appointed as one of the pillar leads so she was seated on the High Table with the President throughout the two days workshop.
Hon. Dr. Blyden though seated on the High Table, was however very quiet throughout most of the workshop. This was unusual of her. It appears her silence was borne of quiet discomfort.
Shortly after lunch on the last day of the workshop, the President took his leave. The workshop however continued with exchange of ideas. Still, Dr. Blyden stayed silent on the High Table.
It was after a colleague minister Hon. Madam Khadijatu O. Sesay, had used firm but diplomatic words to chastise the civil service as being an impediment to successful implementation of SLIBS that Hon. Blyden raised her hands up and requested to speak.
And speak she did. It was hot, hot, hot. 🔥👌🏾
Using her trademark oratory skills, Hon. Dr. Blyden calmly and systematically tore into the corruption, incompetence and deliberate sabotage of President Koroma by elements within the civil service. She said despite all the lofty goals of the President with regards to SLIBS and others of his vision, she doubted if true success could be won; given the type of civil service the country had.
"We are here expending a lot of energy and effort just like we are out there doing same as leaders of the government. But sadly, our efforts can be likened to a dog chasing its tail. The dog will run as much as it likes but it can never catch its tail. It is always an exercise in futility. We chasing this dream of SLIBS but with the kind of civil service we have, it is a dream that might be in futility. Like a dog chasing its tail," Hon. Blyden asserted strongly.
"Someone earlier said that 'if you like the President, you will want his agenda to succeed'. But here's the irony. When a huge chunk of civil servants neither like the President nor do they believe in his agenda and whom will never cast their votes for either the President or the ruling APC, do you think they will want him or his APC agenda that they don't believe in, to succeed?" Hon. Blyden enquired of an audience that was very appreciative of her words.
Hon. Dr. Blyden then turned to the Head of Civil Service Dr. Ernest Surrur who was also inside the hall and challenged him thus:
"If you have a conscience and you really want the best for this country, you should not hide the fact that you are heading a civil service that is, to put it as nicely as I can, a disgrace to this country. A real disgrace and when I say a disgrace, I am putting it as nicely as I can!!!"
Repeating her words to the entire hall that roared with applause, she restated that the SLIBS, like many other visionary programmes of the President, will have its success be challenged by some civil servants who will deliberately undertake actions to undermine and sabotage the dreams and vision of the President.
As she eloquently stated her positions, the entire hall just kept on bursting into applause and interrupting her speech with loud shouts of endorsement and claps of hands. The roars of positive appreciation of her words alongside the applause was so ceaseless that the confident female Cabinet minister had to beg her audience to stop clapping so she could continue speaking.
A largely discomfited Head of the Civil Service then said he wanted to make an input. To his credit, as if smitten by the call for him to listen to his conscience, Dr. Surrur first confessed that he was leading a civil service that was not fit for purpose.
"The civil service we have now is not the civil service we need to push this country forward," the Head of Sierra Leone Civil Service confessed to the hall full of citizens and foreign dignitaries in Port Loko.
However, despite his candid and honest confession, the civil service boss then went on to make a subtle threat that since the Civil Service was a "very formidable structure" and since the civil service can run government but no government can be run without civil servants so therefore, "any minister who comes to resist civil servants is going to fail. The civil service will make sure that minister fails".
His threat received some very insignificant claps from a coterie of a handful of some of his misguided civil servants in the Hall but murmurs of disapproval from others including civil servants, foreigners and citizens in the jampacked Port Loko Hall that were clearly on the side of the female Honourable Minister.
As many in the hall, expressed very loud dissatisfaction of the uttered threat that civil servants could make the female minister fail, one spectator, Mr. Joseph Nbompa Turay stood up and refused to seat down saying he must be given the microphone to address the Head of the Civil Service on behalf of citizens. He was so adamant that the chairman had to give him the mic. Mr. Turay then vehemently condemned the threat to make the minister fail - all to loud applause from others.
Despite the threat to make her fail, an unfazed Hon. Dr. Blyden then asked for the microphone again and although Presidential Adviser Alhaji Alpha Kanu was seen suspiciously writing a note trying to prevent her from speaking out again, the female Cabinet Minister stood firm and insisted that she was going to speak. At which point, another Presidential Adviser Ambassador Dauda Kamara who was chairing the occasion, conceded and gave Dr. Blyden the microphone again.
Indeed, it was another chance for the popular female politician to thrill the Port Loko audience. She first reiterated the importance of the SLIBS process and then likened the process to a chain. She said if one link in the chain was weak, the entire effort will be counter productive. She identified the civil service as a weak link in the SLIBS Concept.
She then ended her words by saying she was not the kind of Minister who planned to fail so she urged Head of Civil Service to go and tell his civil servants that she had the people power behind her in her strides to support President Koroma live up to the APC Manifesto. She derided the earlier reference of Surrur that had warned her not to condemn the Civil Service by reminding of how similar warnings had been given by Burkina Faso parliament against the power of the people.
"Where are those Burkina Faso MPs today?" Hon. Blyden asked the Head of the Civil Service; adding that just as she has been warned not to underestimate the power of the civil service so was she replying to tell the civil service not to underestimate the power of the people as the people of Sierra Leone were supporting her work on behalf of her boss President Koroma.
Those words of Blyden actually became the final contribution that closed the Presidential Workshop. It was a most fitting curtain call.
Meanwhile, this media alliance has reliably learnt from sources close to Hon. Blyden, that the HRMO/PSC Letter leaked to Pro-SLPP newspapers, was a response to a letter written by Hon. Blyden on the advise of the HRMO Director General Mr. Bayoh.
We are most reliably informed by sources close to Blyden that the HRMO Boss dictated that her own letter to her in her office with a promise that he will act on it as mandated of him by Rules 11.10 and 11.13 of the Civil Service Code.
"She did tell him that all she wanted was for the four civil servants to be suspended and that she did not think she should request for an administrative enquiry when the police is actively investigating. He, the HRMO Director General assured her it was quite in place. So he dictates the words and when she signs the letter and give it to him, few days later, he replies to deny her recommendation for suspension and worse of all, the Civil Service then leaks the letter to the press. A complete lack of integrity. No wonder the Honourable Minister says the situation is like a dog chasing its tail," our source close to the Minister has exclusively revealed.
*Rule 11.10* of Civil Service Code says:
If the nature of the alleged misconduct by an officer is deemed to be a criminal offence, and it is considered necessary that in the public interest, the officer should forthwith be prohibited from carrying out his/her duties, pending a disciplinary enquiry into the alleged misconduct, the Head of Ministry or Department may make recommendations to the Director-General that the officer concerned be suspended from duty.
*Rule 11.13* also says: "an officer who is the subject of a criminal investigation may be suspended".
READERS, YOU BE THE JUDGE AS OUR FANTASTIC FEMALE CABINET MINISTER PUTS ON THE ARMOUR TO FIGHT FOR US THE CITIZENS AGAINST A CIVIL SERVICE THAT THE HEAD OF THE CIVIL SERVICE HIMSELF HAS CONFESSED IS NOT FIT FOR PURPOSE. THANK YOU PRESIDENT KOROMA FOR APPOINTING YOUR WELL TRUSTED CABINET MINISTER DR. SYLVIA OLAYINKA BLYDEN. WITH THE LIKES OF SYLVIA BLYDEN IN CABINET, SALONE GO MUST STRAIGHT.
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© Port Loko Media Alliance
Ibrahim Alieu Kanu
Abdul Malik Bangura
Mohamed Santos Conteh
Gunther AB Daramy
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COMENTS:
{Courtesy: Mohmud Tim Kargbo- Sierra Leone Issues} Sunday 31 July 2016
HRMO: IS IT A CASE OF NOT KNOWING YOUR RULES OR STATE SABOTAGE?
Written by Mahmud Tim Kargbo.
Very respectfully, the Sierra Leone Civil Service is a public spirited organisation with a prime objective of ensuring that civil servants entrusted with public resources do not abuse same and the influence accruing from their offices for personal gain or differences.
It was against this background that The Hon. Minister of Social Welfare (Sylvia O. Blyden) presented the complaint bordering on suspicion of corruption to the HRMO and requested the suspension of accused corrupt workers in her Ministry.
However, the request of the Hon. Minister was illegally turned down by the HRMO which necessitated the need for the accused to maintain their offices whilst the investigation is still going on. One wonder why till date, the HRMO failed to understand that such an act has the tendency for the accused to use the powers of their offices to influence the investigation. In short, the act of the HRMO contravene the Civil Service Code, Regulations and Rules which I attache here for your attention
It's no doubt the civil service in Sierra Leone is well electrified with hotbed of corruption under the current HRMO tenure. I urge you all to please look at the Civil Service Code, Regulations and Rules they're quite self explanatory and see how the current HRMO is aiding and abetting alleged wrong doers in the civil service at the expense of the State.
To further expose the sabotage act of the HRMO I hereby refer you all to Rule 11.10 below of the Civil Service Code, Regulations and Rules :
Rule 11.10:
If the nature of the alleged misconduct by an officer is deemed to be a criminal offence, and it is considered necessary that in the public interest, the officer should forthwith be prohibited from carrying out his/her duties, pending a disciplinary enquiry into the alleged misconduct, the Head of Ministry or Department may make recommendations to the Director-General that the officer concerned be suspended from duty.
Unfortunately we have corrupt APC key members supporting such an act of clean sabotage against our own very government to destroy the APC and end it chances in sustaining governance. Can this please be an eye opener for us all to up our game?
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