By Yusufu S. Bangura
As all Roads lead to Bo city today, the Republican National Independent Party (ReNIP) is set to engage delegates on hybrid economy and to repair the country’s economy during the National Delegates’ conference that would commenced on Saturday 18th February and ends on Sunday 19th February.
ReNIP, with Beresford Victor Williams as its leader, is one of the political parties coming up to present proposals to Sierra Leoneans for a new political roadmap for prosperity ahead of the June elections.
The party in January this year went through peacefully lower level elections across the country.
The current ReNIP leader while speaking to this medium, said ReNIP is focussed on solving the problems of infrastructure that will enhance an evenly allocation of resources throughout the country and benchmark for sustainable development and the reduction of poverty.
Critical among what he wants to prioritise is solving the economic debacle which is giving an accelerated advantage to inflation now in double digits.
He added that they were looking forward to stalwarts who will be given the mantle to do exactly what they have vowed to do at party level, for the progress of Sierra Leone as a country when the people shall have given them the mandate to run the country through the June 24 polls.
He said now when the world faces multiple crises, the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the ongoing challenges of climate change, the need for good governance has become more urgent.
“It’s about more than wasting money; good governance enables growth.”
Williams said bad governance and corruption have had negative impacts on Sierra Leone’s economic growth and that such impacts garble public spending and weakened national revenue mobilisation leading to revenue losses.
“ReNIP has a strategic governance plan to tackle existing political menace which continuously breeds poor economic governance leaving vulnerable masses in desperation for improved livelihood. This convention will strengthen the Party’s strategy during this period of electioneering. The ReNIP party is promising Price Control, Hybrid Economy, Job Opportunities, Water and Electricity and justice for all,” he promised.
He further said access to water, sanitation and hygiene, improving the national drive for gender equality and food security are strategic on ReNIP’s national governance agenda.
“Weak infrastructure in the areas of roads and electricity, coupled with hiking transportation costs are among barriers to trade limiting economic growth,” he said.
ReNIP’s chairman said the current leadership of the party was working with his executive members across the country to ensure that the process of electing sets of leaders of the party enjoys a free and fair democratic process, in a friendly and peaceful atmosphere free of violence.
“ReNIP Convention is centred on the party’s election of official who are expected to present candidates to compete for national and local government positions during the June 24 polls. The team, if voted in on June 24, is expected to tackle the aggravated terms-of-trade shocks, which threaten to erode national fiscal stability which continues to hit the poor disproportionately,” he said.
The current ReNIP Chairman and Leader, and former Presidential candidate who seeks delegates’ mandate in Bo this weekend, says the country’s economic prosperity lies in a hybrid economic system with price control system backed by increase in minimum wage .
He believes that ‘the hybrid economy’ requires multi-actor collaborations actions and structures pinched from diverse sectors of economic and political governance.
