WHERE IS THE PATROTISM FROM OUR PARLIAMENTARIANS? I am writing this article with great dismay having read from an online Aljazeera piece that front line health workers in the provinces of Sierra Leone are on strike for better pay and working conditions. As an international human rights advocate and public defender, I feel disgusted over this story especially when I realized that the government of Sierra Leone did approve recently an alleged budget of 7.8 billion Leones for our law makers to engage in sensitization programs to combat the virulent Ebola outbreak in the country. I asked myself some fundamental rhetorical questions: was this decision really prudent given the circumstances? Should our parliamentarians be given such huge amount of monies to embark on sensitization to communities which they represent at the expense of better working conditions of our dedicated frontline health workers? Where is the patriotism and personal sacrifice that is expected to be seen from our esteemed and trusted parliamentarians? As a matter of fact, who are our parliamentarians really going to sensitize at this eleventh hour? At such a time when the entire world is in full awareness about the Ebola epidemic, it is indeed a ridicule to say the least that 62 million leones is alleged to have been dished out to every parliamentarian for such purpose at the expense of health workers welfare and refurbished medical centres. A well structured parliament would have advocated for health workers salaries to be increased to an appreciable amount, instead of calling for such monies to embark on Ebola sensitization. In legal terms, the primary role of parliament is to make and enact laws and to further hold the state accountable for under-performance and not necessarily to embark on health sensitization and awareness raising programmes. Such tasks are often and better effected through civil society organisations and NGOs who may have the required skills, time and expertise to embark on such daunting exercises to various parts of the country. Trust me; a busy parliament would surely have had no time for such matters. Rather, they would have focused more on passing enabling health legislations and policies as well as ensure effective accountability of state actions and inactions over the entire Ebola crisis. This is what we expect from our Parliamentarians! But assuming without conceding that their quest for sensitization was in place, what stops our parliamentarians from using their own monies and salaries to embark on Ebola sensitization campaigns to the very communities that elected them to parliament? It is evidently clear that since the outbreak of this virulent disease our nurses and doctors have suffered the most simply because of the rudimentary equipment being used as well as the lack of basic support to improve the health sector in the country. I have not heard of any MP who has lost his or her life in the fight against Ebola which perhaps might have necessitated such direct intervention from parliamentarians. I urge therefore the government to re-think its strategy in using the limited resources and contributions being donated by ordinary but diligent Sierra Leoneans all over the world for the right purpose of providing the necessary paraphernalia for health workers and not allowing such resources to be deliberately siphoned under the guise of machinated programs. It is about time that the state stop implementing wrong programmes and misplaced priorities and save enough funds for emergency medical interventions such as cases like Dr Olivette Dock who currently needs urgent help and assistance. Let’s endeavor to put the interests of our health workers and medical centres during this time first above all else and save the embarrassment of depending absolutely on external support for everything. Improving the salaries and working conditions of health workers that are in the frontline as well as provisions of medical treatment centers should be the best thing to do at the moment rather than giving out such sumptuous amount of monies to an institution who was never created in the first place for health sensitization. If parliamentarians are really keen to embark on Ebola sensitization, nothing stops them from doing so on their own accord as a proof of their patriotism to the nation. Asking for billions of Leones to do mere sensitization to communities that are already in full awareness of Ebola is just unfathomable! And besides, gathering people and communities together at such a time when such gatherings are not to be encouraged stands counterproductive to the very Ebola campaign itself. A change of result requires a change of approach…And it must first start with the way our parliamentarians do things. By Rashid Justice Dumbuya See Link below on health workers strike action from Aljazeera news. May God help my Nation. aljazeera/news/africa/2014/09/ebola-hospital-workers-walk-out-over-pay-20149134402459279.html
Posted on: Sat, 13 Sep 2014 15:27:54 +0000
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