By Alusine A. Sesay
Here is the thing: let us not be deceived.
The Guinean soldiers are no match for our own in terms of combat proficiency. This is an established belief.
The Guinean military has never been subjected to the crucible of sustained combat operations. They are no match for our troops.
The main deficiencies afflicting our armed forces, deficiencies that are critical, are the lack of contemporary military equipment and the absence of a truly formidable, resolute, courageous and strategic commander to lead them. What our soldiers lack most crucially is modern, up-to-date military equipment.
It must be underscored that every contingent of our soldiers deployed on missions across the African continent has performed with distinction. Their record is not one of failure; it is one of honour.
It is therefore unjust to attribute the events at Kalieyereh in Falaba District to the rank-and-file military personnel.
The responsibility rests squarely with those charged with governing our country.
The greatest betrayal of Sierra Leone is not external aggression; it is internal misgovernance. Under the administration of Maada Bio, statecraft has been marred by duplicity, a deficit of integrity, and a persistent inability to act in the best interests of the nation.
This Guinea incident at Kalieyereh in Falaba District — the fault does not lie with the soldier at the frontier; it lies with inept political leadership that appears bereft of strategic competence, utterly devoid of any understanding of governance, whose malfeasance has precipitated such national embarrassment.
I must say governance structures are faltering.
Mamadi Doumbouya of Guinea has evidently recognised that he is engaging with a government that lacks firmness and patriotic resolve. He is capitalising on this weakness.
If this trajectory is not halted decisively, it will persist unabated. You see how he is now exploiting this weakness with impunity. Unless this trajectory is arrested, such incursions will persist with increasing frequency.
First, it was the protracted dispute over Yenga; subsequently, a village in Kono District; and now Kalieyereh in Falaba District.
These unauthorised Guinean military rendezvous along our border towns must cease forthwith.
The tone of the Guinean press release reflected no diplomatic restraint. Such conduct raises legitimate questions about the practical value of regional cooperation within the Mano River Union. One is compelled to ask: what precisely does this “Union” signify if mutual respect is absent?
This incident constitutes one of the most humiliating episodes for Sierra Leoneans in recent memory.
It is not that the Guineans can defeat us in combat — they cannot.
The issue is not capability; it is resolve and leadership.
Our prolonged patience has been misconstrued as weakness, and emboldenment has followed.
That trajectory must be arrested. We must act decisively.
The irony is profound when one considers Sierra Leone’s recent “prominence” within ECOWAS.
Over the past months, Sierra Leone has occupied a series of highly visible chairmanship positions. The pattern is unmistakable.
Consider the following list:
- Chairmanship of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government (held by Sierra Leone);
- Chairmanship of the ECOWAS Committee of Chiefs of Defence Staff (held by Sierra Leone);
- Chairmanship of the ECOWAS Judicial Council (held by Sierra Leone);
- Chairmanship of Heads of Police in ECOWAS (held by Sierra Leone);
- Chairmanship of the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice (held by Sierra Leone);
- Chairmanship of Heads of Foreign Affairs Ministers in ECOWAS (held by Sierra Leone).
You are seeing a pattern, right?
Yet, despite holding all these positions, not one of them appears to confer any tangible benefit when we need to assert our sovereignty against an invading force on our own territory.
This is deeply disturbing. None appears to carry practical weight when the territorial integrity of our state is challenged.
This contradiction is staggering.
It suggests that these accolades may have been procured rather than merited, and that we do not genuinely deserve them.
Any nation with competent governance, armed with such a plethora of sub-regional chairmanships, would surely leverage these titles to effect positive outcomes for its citizens.
Not so in Sierra Leone. For us, these honours exist only on paper.
Our government lacks the intellectual acumen and strategic know-how to elevate our nation. Its sole discernible competence lies in suppressing its defenceless and innocent citizens at every opportunity.
The bitter irony is that these Guinean provocations are unfolding under the watch of a “Retired Brigadier.”
One cannot help but question the meaning of this military rank.
Does the citizenry comprehend the responsibilities incumbent upon a Brigadier?
Military rank implies discipline, strategic clarity, and decisive command.
Mamadi Doumbouya of Guinea, by contrast, holds the lesser rank of Colonel and exhibits assertiveness in the defence of his national interests.
History attests that some of the most courageous men in military service, both living and deceased, have been Captains — a lesser rank. This makes the situation all the more baffling.
One must ask: what then does Brigadier rank signify if it is not accompanied by effective action against an encroaching neighbour?
Are we to take this seriously?
Maada Bio must try these three methods to protect our territorial integrity:
- Militarily: If, as a Brigadier, one is incapable of safeguarding the nation through military means, one must proceed to the next option.
- Diplomatically: Regrettably, given the unresolved Yenga and Kono boundary disputes, this avenue also appears to be failing. Consider Burkina Faso, which employed diplomatic channels to alert Nigeria to an airspace infringement, compelling a Nigerian aircraft to land. Within three days, the matter was resolved amicably through diplomacy.
- Legally: Finally, there is recourse to international legal mechanisms, as exemplified by Ghana’s resolution of its land dispute with Togo. It seems, however, that this option too is beyond the capabilities of our current leadership.
If a Commander-in-Chief is unable to protect the nation militarily, diplomatically, or legally, then fundamental questions about leadership inevitably arise.
This national crisis unfolds while we hold the chairmanships of every significant ECOWAS body listed above.
The situation is beyond irony; it is a farce.
Is our nation labouring under a curse?
I reiterate: I do not blame our soldiers at all.
With appropriate equipment, elevated morale, and competent leadership, our forces are fully capable of defending the Republic.
They are constrained not by courage, but by governance failures.
The price of political incompetence is borne not only by the military but by the entire nation.
The humiliation felt by many citizens is real. It is not solely about a border incident. It is about national dignity, sovereign authority, and the steady erosion of confidence in those entrusted with leadership.
For the first time in a considerable period, I find myself profoundly embarrassed by the indignity visited upon our soldiers by the Guinean forces.
Until governance is strengthened, strategic clarity restored, and national interest placed above political expediency, such crises will recur, and we shall all continue to pay the price.
