By Alusine Sesay

I have watched a video in which the First Lady of Sierra Leone Fatima Bio, unflinchingly exposed the appalling treatment of local employees by Koidu Limited in Kono District.

Now, whether you agree or disagree with the First Lady on other matters is entirely your prerogative, but on this particular issue, the rights and dignity of Sierra Leonean workers, she is, without question, absolutely correct to speak out.

It is a fundamental and universal principle that every worker, regardless of their station or location, deserves to be treated with decency, fairness, and respect.

Only a derelict and morally bankrupt nation would stand idly by as foreign corporations plunder its resources whilst simultaneously abusing and dehumanising its own people.
Make no mistake, Koidu Limited is not doing Sierra Leoneans any favours.

They are not a charitable institution. They are here to extract wealth, and they are laughing all the way to the bank while paying mere pittances in taxes. It is, frankly, an insult to the intelligence of every Sierra Leonean.

What is even more SCANDALOUS is how these mining contracts are negotiated behind closed doors, shrouded in secrecy, with no meaningful community participation or public oversight. This lack of transparency is a fertile breeding ground for corporate exploitation and corruption at the expense of ordinary citizens.

The First Lady has rightly highlighted the inhumane conditions in which these workers are subjected to: perilous, hazardous environments, incomplete or withheld wages, no proper breaks, appalling sanitation, and drinking water unfit for human consumption. Many of these employees are treated not merely as second-class citizens, but as subhuman.–, a modern-day workforce trapped in conditions akin to SLAVERY.

Also, the environmental destruction caused by these mining operations is nothing short of catastrophic.— Deforestation, contaminated water sources, polluted air, destroyed habitats,–this is the devastating price our people and environment continue to pay, while corporate profits soar.

Let us not delude ourselves. Sierra Leone has, for far too long, borne the burden of what economists call the “resource curse”. —a cruel paradox wherein countries rich in natural resources (like ours), experience crippling poverty, corruption, underdevelopment, and chronic instability.

Since the discovery of diamonds in 1930 (95 freaking years ago), what tangible benefit has Kono District, or indeed Sierra Leone as a whole, reaped from this so-called blessing? Damn-it, Tell me. Huh?

I mean, take a look around you: what you will see is widespread despair, unrelenting poverty, lack of infrastructure, and a disillusioned, hungry populace.
Ninety-five years on, the promise of economic transformation remains a cruel mirage.

And while our people languish, the true beneficiaries are not in Kono, Tonkolili, or Kenema Districts, et al, but in air-conditioned boardrooms in Europe, North America, and Asia. These companies declare record-breaking profits, funnel their earnings offshore, and illicit financial flows.

Also, when I take a closer look in these mining companies, all we are witnessing is that, the structure of our mining industry is a relic of colonial exploitation:– We extract raw materials and export them cheaply, while the real wealth, –refining, manufacturing, and value addition, occurs overseas. This entrenched system reinforces DEPENDENCY, UNDERDEVELOPMENT and POVERTY.

Even now, in the era of climate transition and “green economies,” Sierra Leone’s role is reduced to that of an extraction hub, providing essential resources while being DENIED the opportunity to build local industries or participate meaningfully in the global value chain. It is nothing less than twenty-first-century neo-colonialism with a ‘green’ veneer.–

It is high time for a fundamental paradigm shift. Sierra Leone must develop and enforce robust national strategies that ensure our natural resources serve the interests of our people.–not foreign corporations and their offshore shareholders.

Rewrite extractive contracts with transparency and local benefit as priorities. Punish corporate malfeasance with teeth, –fines, closures, and prosecutions. Demand onshore value addition. —no more exporting raw materials for others to profit.

We must also embed principles of transparency, accountability, and community benefit AT THE CORE of our extractive policies.

Our resources should no longer be a CURSE but a catalyst for inclusive growth, job creation, and sustainable national development. –The days of exploitation and complicity must come to an end. Enough of this foolery and brazen exploitation by corporate gangsters with no scintilla of ethical standards.