Yesterday 30 July 2025 , the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) kicks off its much-publicized 2025 National Delegate Convention at the Bintumani Conference Hall in Freetown. The gathering, meant to elect new national officers, has drawn not just party faithful, but a parade of political guests — including top officials from the main opposition, the All People’s Congress (APC).
But while they clap hands and pose for photos inside plush halls, the real Sierra Leone — the Sierra Leone outside Bintumani — is collapsing.
Across the country, families are drowning in poverty, prices of food and basic goods are out of control, and young people are either jobless or hooked on dangerous drugs flooding our streets. Public hospitals are death traps, schools are broken, and electricity is a luxury for the few. Yet the same politicians responsible for this national disgrace are celebrating themselves like heroes.
Let’s be clear: SLPP and APC are two faces of the same coin. They may pretend to be rivals in public, but behind closed doors, they eat from the same pot and dance to the same tune — power and personal gain. They don’t fight for you. They fight for contracts, connections, and control.
After the disputed June 2023 elections — which both national and international observers agree were rigged — many citizens feel betrayed by the APC leadership. Instead of standing up for the people’s stolen votes, some APC big guns went silent, allegedly cutting deals with the Bio-led SLPP government. Today, those same so-called opposition figures are suspected of being contractors for the government — securing lucrative deals while turning a blind eye to the growing injustice, corruption, and suffering in the land.
And let’s not forget: these are the same APC leaders who now sneak into State House at night to collect envelopes and favors, only to return to the public and shout “opposition” in the daylight. Who are they fooling?
While politicians wine and dine, Sierra Leone has gained a new international reputation — a cocaine trafficking hub in West Africa. The First Family’s alleged protection of wanted EU drug lord Jos has brought disgrace to our nation. Our youth — the hope of tomorrow — are being buried by addiction, lawlessness, and hopelessness. Drug abuse has turned communities into crime zones, and not a single major party leader has spoken out against it.
This is a message to every citizen: do not fight for politicians who do not fight for you. Stop making enemies of your neighbors because of APC or SLPP. These politicians are not enemies — they are business partners. They plan together, drink together, fly out together, and loot together. Only the poor fight each other over party colors while the elites toast to your ignorance.
After more than 60 years of independence, Sierra Leone still cannot provide clean water, decent roads, stable electricity, affordable healthcare, or quality education. Yet, the same leaders live in mansions, drive luxury cars, and fly abroad for medical checkups, while the rest of us suffer and die in silence.
The SLPP convention is not a celebration of progress. It is a painful reminder that our leaders — both red and green — have failed us.
If we, the people, do not wake up, speak up, and stand up — they will keep using us, abusing us, and discarding us.
Remember: same faces, same failures, different slogans.
It’s time to reject the politics of betrayal and hold every leader accountable, no matter what color they wear.
Sierra Leone deserves better. Don’t be fooled again.
