Wikileaks and sacred cows

It appears that no one escapes Julian Assange’s radar, not even Sierra Leone. While diplomats around the world are licking their wounds, a fresh round of cables has the tabloid media in Freetown in a tizzy.

One cable dredges up an issue from mid-2008 when an airplane filled with about 600 kg of cocaine was found at Freetown’s Lungi International Airport. This led to the most high profile investigation ever conducted in the country and a trial that for the very first time used a witness protection program. A cable authored by Chargé d'affaires for the US Embassy in Freetown, Glenn Fedzer alleged that President Ernest Bai Koroma had ordered the authorities not to arrest Kemoh Sesay, who was the transport minister at the time and whose brother is currently serving a sentence in connection with the same incident. The cables have also expressed concerns over West Africa’s involvement in the cocaine route.

This report comes at a most unfortunate time for the incumbent head of state. His party, the All People’s Congress, is rallying for re-election at the national polls in 2012 and is getting ready to celebrate 50 years of Sierra Leonean independence next year. Also, I remember listening to countless radio broadcasts last month where the president reaffirmed his party’s hardline on corruption, his commitment to attitudinal and behavioural change, and once again said that there were no ‘sacred cows’ in his administration. People were almost starting to believe this, given that in the past year many erring government officials have been prosecuted.

This is just the sort of political story that the Sierra Leonean media love. Not being in the country at the moment, I can only imagine the delicious headlines being published. The government usually down pretty hard on investigative journalism using its 1965 Public Order Act. This law enables the government to book journalists for libellous stories and had been generously abused in the past. In this case however, there’s not much the authorities can do except huff and puff.

Like with many other countries at the receiving end of these stings, Sierra Leone has also had a soothing apology from the US ambassador to the country. This would not affect US policy towards Sierra Leone in any way, they were told. Of course not, just donor confidence when it comes to getting budget support and project funding.

Do you want to know how deep the rabbit hole really go? Morpheus asked. Will there be an investigation into whether mismanagement took place? Now those are the headlines I can’t wait to read.