The All People’s Congress (APC) party top man, Samura Kamara, is still silent about his plans for the media existence in Sierra Leone.

As political campaigns are now declared to go on across the country, APC’s presidential aspirant remains quite over the media’s fate in the country which is still underdeveloped.

Samura doesn’t seem to have a policy on how, if he won 2023 general elections, his government could help the media develop.  There are many Sierra Leoneans seeking employment in the media.

Reporters Without Borders at end of year  2022 put statistics of registered media outlets in Sierra Leone with 228 radio stations; 242 newspapers, 24 magazines, 26 local TV stations and 11 digital TV stations, operating in Sierra Leone.

Yet, journalists still receive peanuts as wages owing to media poverty. To reverse the sad trend, the government and other partners are calling for investment in the media sector, challenged by low advertising outputs.

“Public subsidies, tax breaks, a more encouraging environment for investors and greater transparency in by government advertising distribution can all help ensure the survival of media in the public interest,’’ BBC Media Action, suggested at Sierra Leone’s National Media Viability and Investment Conference held in Freetown on 21-22 April  2022.

As Sierra Leoneans head to the polls June 24 this year, they want a clear message from politicians on their policies. Every sector now wishes to know what plans do the next government has on policy formulation.

Unlike the ruling government, Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) which has expressed commitment to investing on the media, APC’s relationship with the media is still uncertain.

It appears as if APC’s leaders are not media friendly as they have over the years failed to make strong commitment to reforming the media landscape in the country.

Former president Koroma came to power since 2007-2017, but he left the seat of power without making robust media reforms, such as repealing 1965 Public Order Act, which used to criminalize media practitioners.

Despite he had promised very strongly to have kicked out the 1965 Criminal and Seditious Libel law, ex-president Koroma showed vague commitment to repeal the obnoxious law.

Instead, under his ten- year plus regime, popular journalists were caned with the law as they were imprisoned.

A popular broadcast journalist, David Tambayoh, was once a victim of Koroma’s wrath over the journalist critically widely listened to radio programme, Monologue.

Showing lack of willingness to repealing the law that criminalized journalists,   APC’s information ministry was playing rhetoric around the issue as ex-info minister, Ibrahim Ben Kargbo, downplayed questions from journalists on government’s readiness to expunge the repressive law.

Under President Koroma’s leadership, little gains were made with regards press freedom.  Since journalists were arrested and locked in jail as the law continued to exist in colonial shelves, Sierra Leone had fettered media freedom dictated by the powers that be.

The country, however; saw signs of a rainbow of press freedom under a stiff challenger, Retired Brigadier Julius Maada Bio,  of ex-president Koroma in 2012 general elections and of  Dr Samura Kamara in 2018 general elections.

Unlike APC’s leaders, Mr Bio assured Sierra Leonean journalists that if voted to become president in 2018, he would remove the 1965 Public Order Act, which used to criminalize journalists while carrying out their functions.

And he did exactly as he assured journalists during 2017 campaign periods.

The old Public Order Act of 1965 was voted out by MPs in July 23, 2020 and it was replaced with a new law called Independent Media Commission Act of 2020 which was signed by President Julius Maada Bio on Wednesday October 28, 2020.

Since the inception of Independent Media Commission Act, there have been marked progresses in the media sector.

Consultations have been held with various stakeholders on promoting the media in Sierra Leone. There have been heightening calls by Sierra Leone’s Association of Journalists ( SLAJ) and other media fraternities to opening up investment and upholding professionalism in the media industry.

When President Julius Maada Bio removed the 1965 Public Order Act, Sierra Leone received positive global recognition as a country that seeks to embrace press freedom.

Sierra Leone is now part of Media Freedom Coalition as it has signed a Global Pledge on Media Freedom.

As president Bio made strides to reform the media sector in Sierra Leone, his government, however; seems to have lately muzzled media operators’ functions as the emergence of another law on cyberspace threatens freedom of expression.

That has derailed the president ongoing success of his Sierra Leone People’s party government.

Meanwhile,  though Sierra Leone crawls in the World Press Freedom in 74th position out of 180 countries ( according to a latest report by Reporters Without Borders), she has made remarkable progress than in the past two decades in the country’s history, a credit that goes to Bio and his administration.

The incumbent president Julius Maada Bio is going for a second term in office. Though he was unable to create sound investment opportunities for the media as assured, many observers believe he has already set the pace for the media to become viable.

He may be able to advance on that if he wins 2023 polls.

There is commitment already as challenges and opportunities have been identified.

Sierra Leone has just held a National Media Viability and Investment Conference in April last year.

But as the country gets presidential elections this year, most Sierra Leonean media writers and investors are now concerned over the fate of the media in Sierra Leone.

This is especially so when the country is on elections’ festive just three weeks to the polls.

Media practitioners now eagerly want to know what are APC‘s plans or SLPP’s on Sierra Leone’s media investment drive.

Samura and his team are seen as media foes as they maintain a tight-lipped on the growth of the media industry.

Sierra Leone’s traditional media (the press and broadcast media) have been a big employer of young people.

While most observers say APC’s party is sidelining itself from the traditional media advertising, the party’s activities are mostly run on social media platforms instead, a factor that continues to stifle media revenue mobilization.