{"id":82457,"date":"2017-09-26T02:46:05","date_gmt":"2017-09-26T02:46:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sierraexpressmedia.com\/?p=82457"},"modified":"2017-09-26T02:46:05","modified_gmt":"2017-09-26T02:46:05","slug":"verdict-2018-pen-portrait-john-bonoh-sisay-the-ceo-gunning-to-be-next-president","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sierraexpressmedia.net\/?p=82457","title":{"rendered":"Verdict 2018 Pen Portrait – John Bonoh Sisay: The CEO gunning to be next President"},"content":{"rendered":"

One night in mid-September, President Ernest Bai Koroma, now in the twilight of his presidency, invited his key lieutenants to State Lodge. Among them were some who had declared their intention to succeed him. Others, nursing the ambition to run but who will not openly say so, were also there. Social media quickly went overdrive. They called Koroma\u2019 s gathering of the APC contenders for President the \u2018Last Supper,\u2019 much like how Jesus met with his twelve disciples before he was betrayed.<\/span><\/p>\n

John Bonoh Sisay (in photo), the onetime CEO of Sierra Leone\u2019s prestigious Sierra Rutile company, the one the London-based Independent newspaper described as \u201cthe South Londoner who could become Sierra Leone\u2019s next President,\u201d and now running to succeed his first cousin from State House, was also at that \u2018Last Supper.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

He said the gathering was not a \u2018Last Supper\u2019 and jokingly added that even if it was, he did not spot any Judas. According to him, it was a long, cordial and productive meeting, and that from time-to-time the President will continue to bring this group together.<\/span><\/p>\n

JBS, as he his fondly called, had hardly slept after State House when I met him at his residence. He had been meeting with other people before I came. It was our very first time. He wore what seems to me his trademark (when he is not in a suit and tie) navy blue khaki pants and a somewhat sky-blue linen shirt. I have seen several pictures of him on the campaign trail. I once saw him at Kotoka Airport in Accra, Ghana, dressed in similar fashion.<\/span><\/p>\n

I wanted to talk to him about his stewardship at Sierra Rutile, his vision, recent reports in both local and international media about corruption, whether being the first cousin to the President would give him undue advantage against the other contenders, his experience for the soon-to-be-vacated post, what would his first 100 days in office be like should he ultimately become President.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, JBS was also equally fixated on the news that his younger brother, Sampha Sisay, a soul singer-producer, had just won the 2017 Hyundai Mercury Music Prize for his \u201ccritically acclaimed debut album, Process.\u201d The award is one of UK\u2019s most prestigious music prizes. He was one of five South London artists nominated and he beat singers like Ed Sheeran, Kate Tempest and Stormzy to win the 25,000 British pounds prize for a song on the grief he felt when his mother, Binta, died of cancer, according to the BBC. \u201cThis feeling was best exemplified by the ballad, (No one knows me) like the piano,\u201d\u00a0which mama Binta had taught him how to play.<\/span><\/p>\n

I congratulated JBS and wanted his reaction. As an elder brother, he said he was deeply emotional and very proud of his 28-year-old brother whom he claimed always does his best in whatever he is passionate about. He adds that he has been in touch with him. \u201cHe feels like he is in a dream. It has not sunk in yet,\u201d Sisay said and added that he himself learnt a lot from his mother, Binta. \u201cIf you fail, she embraces you, if you succeed, she embraces you as well.\u201d For JBS, the married man with four daughters, ma<\/a>ma Binta was simply the best.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Independent newspaper\u2019s banner headline, \u201cThe South Londoner who could become Sierra Leone\u2019s next President\u201d did not appear to faze John. For starters, he claimed, \u201cI don\u2019t see myself as a South Londoner. South London was a place I stayed when I was in the UK,\u00a0but I am a typical Sierra Leonean first \u2013 have always been and will always be.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

JBS described himself as a Pan-Africanist, believing that Africa\u2019s best days are still ahead. The paradigm is shifting and he wanted to be a participant and not as a spectator; he cannot expect someone else to develop his country. He has worked in different places, garnering a wealth of experience, and he wants to be a part of the next phase of development.<\/span><\/p>\n

JBS is driven by a desire to create opportunities for the youth, to help change the \u201cobsessively negative perceptions of ourselves,\u201d adding that Sierra Leone was not created to be a curse but a blessing. \u201cI go into politics with a very positive optimism,\u201d says the 48-year old Economist, Administrator and Minerals Expert. He is a Christian who was born in Freetown to a mum from Kambia and a dad from Kamabai, northern Sierra Leone.\u00a0Both parents are Limbas.<\/span><\/p>\n

How would he react to people who say he is too young to be president? What is the life expectancy in Sierra Leone? He asks, and answers: \u201cbetween 49 and 51.\u201d He has an open mind, he says, insisting that he is old enough to have gained a lot of experience. In fact, by his estimation, he is at the ideal age to rule this country. He reminded me that Emmanuel Macron of France is 39; Justin Trudeau of Canada was 43 when he became Prime Minister and David Cameron was also 43 when he became Prime Minister of Britain.<\/span><\/p>\n

Under the umbrella of the \u2018Join 4 Betteh Sierra Leone,\u2019 a political movement to actualise his presidential ambition, JBS has crisis-crossed the country dishing out donations to the needy and also talking with the young as well as the old. The people he met and spoke with want opportunities. \u201cTheir hope and faith are in their children,\u201d he adds. In a pensive mood, he said this is the 21st century- Sierra Leoneans should not be dying to basic diseases and nature should not be killing us anymore!<\/span><\/p>\n

He says his vision is in line with that of the APC. \u201cWhen Sierra Leone does well, we all do well.\u201d He would like to continue with President Koroma\u2019s Agenda for Prosperity, but he will add a real drive to it. He will focus on good health care, good education, real access to finance and job opportunities to create a middle class economy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Asked whether being the first cousin to Koroma is a baggage or an advantage, JBS, who once practiced as a Pentecostal preacher after college, looked straight into my eyes and said, \u201cIt is what it is,\u201d and then quipped: \u201cMy relationship with him should not give me an advantage or a disadvantage.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

JBS is working on a detailed first\u00a0100 days in office agenda. Priorities include women\u2019s rights, education, health and the economy, in addition to putting the right team in place.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was a great pleasure for him to work with Sierra Rutile for 18 years. He said he took over a company that was destroyed and he rebuilt and made it the largest producers of rutile in the world. He learnt a lot about himself at Sierra Rutile.<\/span><\/p>\n

On being accused of corruption by some in the media, he says, \u201cThat is the nature of the political terrain where some would try and throw dirt. I have not been investigated. If I am, I have not been told and I take it as part of the journey.\u201d Having worked for 18 years at Sierra Rutile, he claims \u201che invested some of his savings and as a result, questions about his wealth do not pass a reasonable man\u2019s test.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

There was time for one more question and it was: Who is John Bonoh Sisay? He described himself as a blessed young man who was inspired by his father.<\/span><\/p>\n

Throughout the interview, he sounded articulate and well-intentioned. The real test will come later in the year, at the party\u2019s convention in October. In Makeni town in the Northern Province, his billboards compete for space with those of two other contenders. If JBS manages to win his party\u2019s nomination for president, it would be a major political statement by this savvy CEO, a political neophyte until recently, but whose appeal is anchored on a can-do personality. The story could then be that Sierra Leoneans wanted to break away from career politicians. For the moment, the headwinds are still strong.<\/span><\/p>\n

By Osman Benk Sankoh<\/em><\/p>\n

Disclaimer: Osman Benk Sankoh, a former editor of Concord Times, now works with the United Nations. Sentiments expressed in this piece are his and do not reflect those of his organization.<\/em><\/p>\n

Stay with Sierra Express Media, for your trusted place in news!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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