Ghost Budgets and Golden Pensions: How Entitlements Are Draining Sierra

 

By Mahmud Tim Kargbo

Sierra Leone’s post-war political economy rests on a dangerous contradiction. Successive governments have pledged expansive public services while lacking the fiscal capacity and political discipline to deliver them sustainably. The outcome is an economy distorted by patronage, a civil service burdened by recurrent costs, and a pension system that rewards privilege over service.

As public debt mounts and revenue stagnates, the nation teeters on the edge of a fiscal crisis. This would be especially devastating for the very citizens these entitlements were designed to protect. What lies before us is not merely a budgetary concern. It is a question of intergenerational justice, constitutional integrity, and ethical governance.

Historical Prelude: Sir Albert Margai and The Origins of Institutional Backsliding

The fiscal fragility of Sierra Leone did not begin with Siaka Stevens. Its roots trace further back to the tenure of Sir Albert Margai, who served as Prime Minister from 1964 to 1967. Although he inherited a relatively stable economy from his brother, Sir Milton Margai, Sir Albert’s administration rapidly undermined the democratic foundations of the state and sowed deep political and economic divisions.

Determined to consolidate power, Sir Albert attempted to transform Sierra Leone into a de facto one party state. In 1965, his government introduced legislation, notably the Public Order Act and amendments to the Criminal Libel Law,to suppress opposition and limit press freedom (http://www.sierra-leone.org/Laws/1965-46.pdf). These laws curtailed civil liberties, polarised political discourse, and set a precedent for authoritarian rule that would be perfected under his successors.

Economically, his tenure witnessed growing fiscal indiscipline, particularly through excessive spending to bolster political loyalty. According to a retrospective by Christopher Clapham, Margai “presided over a government that became increasingly dominated by personal rule, with public appointments and expenditure directed toward ethnic and political consolidation” (http://www.jstor.org/stable/159853). This shift diverted state resources away from national development and into factional patronage.

Most notably, Margai’s open favouritism towards the Mende ethnic group in state appointments and military promotions alienated the northern dominated opposition. This ethno political bias fuelled public unrest and laid the groundwork for the 1967 constitutional crisis, during which he refused to accept electoral defeat and attempted to annul the results that favoured opposition leader Siaka Stevens (http://www.sierraleonetrc.org/index.php/view-report-text-vol-3b/item/vol-three-b-chapter-two).

The result was a breakdown of constitutional order. The military intervened, setting in motion a series of coups that destabilised the country for years and deeply damaged investor confidence and state legitimacy.

The Roots Of Fiscal Fragility: From Stevens To The Present

The problem worsened under the patronage driven governance of the Siaka Stevens era, beginning in 1968. Centralised executive power was entrenched through public sector job allocations and unsustainable subsidies handed to political loyalists. Employment in the public service became more about political allegiance than economic merit.

By the 1980s, structural adjustment policies imposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank dismantled essential public services without introducing functional alternatives. This institutional hollowing was a direct contributor to the civil conflict. As the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) noted in its final report, “The mismanagement of public resources and the failure of equitable governance were central to the grievances that fuelled armed conflict” (http://www.sierraleonetrc.org).

In the post war era, both the Ernest Bai Koroma and Julius Maada Bio administrations pledged reform. In practice, however, each expanded public sector hiring, particularly during election cycles, and failed to meaningfully address entitlements such as pensions, subsidies, and payroll reforms. The Audit Service Sierra Leone (ASSL) highlighted in its 2022 report that ghost workers, duplicate payments, and opaque procurement remain endemic (http://www.auditservice.gov.sl).

Why Entitlement Reform Must Be A National Priority

The arithmetic is stark. Over 70 percent of the national budget is consumed by recurrent expenditures, chiefly wages, pensions, and subsidies. This leaves minimal fiscal space for capital investment, disaster resilience, or economic diversification.

This is not only fiscally unsustainable, it is morally untenable. According to the Afrobarometer Round 8 survey (2022), 68 percent of Sierra Leoneans believe government spending benefits the wrong people, while only 28 percent believe that public resources are managed in the public interest (http://www.afrobarometer.org).

The pension system is especially troubling. The National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NASSIT) has been consistently criticised by the Centre for Investigative Journalism Sierra Leone (CIJ-SL) for risky investments, opaque contracts, and poor service delivery. Retired senior officials receive generous payouts, while thousands of lower income pensioners go unpaid for months or receive monthly stipends below the cost of living threshold (http://www.cijsl.org).

Trust Funds or Trust Deficits?

While Sierra Leone lacks formal entitlement trust funds like those in the United States, its laws mandate earmarked funding for specific purposes, such as the Road Maintenance Fund, Petroleum Resources Revenue Fund, and District Council Allocations.

Yet these statutory funds are often diverted to cover routine expenditures, in violation of their legal frameworks. The Audit Service Reports (2021–2023) have repeatedly flagged unlawful withdrawals and the failure to remit mandatory transfers to local government units (http://www.auditservice.gov.sl).

In one notable case, over Le120 billion earmarked for rural healthcare in 2022 was reallocated to settle fuel subsidies and questionable contractor arrears. These practices contravene Section 119 of the 1991 Constitution, which mandates fiscal transparency and empowers the Auditor-General to expose misuse (http://www.sierraleonetrc.org). Yet Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has failed to act decisively on these findings.

Reclaiming The Moral Purpose Of State Spending

Sierra Leone must fundamentally rethink the state’s role in distributing public resources. Entitlement reform is not merely an economic adjustment, it is a moral necessity.

Article 7 of the 1991 Constitution calls for the just allocation of the nation’s material resources for “the common good” (http://www.sierraleonetrc.org). That principle is regularly violated when funds are directed towards elite travel, inflated security budgets, or discretionary presidential projects, while rural health centres and schools operate without basic supplies.

Political Economy: Why Reform Is Hard But Necessary 

Reform is politically fraught. In 2016, an attempt by the Koroma administration to cut fuel subsidies provoked mass protests and was quickly reversed. President Maada Bio’s 2018 anti-corruption reforms initially gained traction but were quietly curtailed by 2020 due to internal resistance.

This reflects a stark reality: public finance in Sierra Leone is politicised. Entitlements are electoral tools. Reforming them, whether by reducing political appointments, rationalising pensions, or eliminating ghost workers, invites backlash.

Yet delay makes the problem worse. As the TRC warned, “Delays in addressing economic exclusion will invariably generate instability.” Reform is not optional, it is essential to the survival of the state.

Regional Lessons and Comparative Experiences

Across Africa, similar challenges are being met with varied responses. In Ghana, salary caps and performance based budgeting show promise, though enforcement remains inconsistent. Rwanda ties performance contracts to budget allocations, improving fiscal accountability. Even Liberia, under President George Weah, passed modest pension reforms to limit elite benefits.

Sierra Leone should emulate such models while avoiding the pitfalls of countries like Guinea, where entitlements have become tools of ethno political favouritism rather than instruments of equity.

What a National Agenda Could Look Like

A credible, phased reform agenda must include the following priorities:

Legally cap political appointments and allowances in accordance with the Remuneration Act and the Public Financial Management Act (PFMA, 2016).

Transform blanket fuel and utility subsidies into targeted, biometric cash transfers for low-income households.

Digitise payroll systems across all MDAs, with oversight by the Internal Audit Directorate, to eliminate ghost workers.

Restructure NASSIT, separating investment functions from pension administration, and require independent annual audits published online.

Amend the Anti-Corruption Act (2019 Amendment) to grant the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) prosecutorial autonomy in high value entitlement fraud (http://www.auditservice.gov.sl).

The Time for Responsible Governance Is Now

Sierra Leone cannot afford to wait for collapse before reforming. Public finances must no longer be battlegrounds for partisan interest, nor can fiscal restraint be framed as political punishment.

What is needed is a reawakening of national conscience. A return to constitutional values. A listening ear to the grievances recorded by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. A future shaped not by expediency, but by principle.

Let reform begin, not in panic, but in purpose.

References:

Audit Service Sierra Leone Reports (2021–2023): http://www.auditservice.gov.sl

Truth and Reconciliation Commission Reports (Vol. 2 and Vol. 3B): http://www.sierraleonetrc.org

Public Order Act (1965): http://www.sierra-leone.org/Laws/1965-46.pdf

Constitution of Sierra Leone (1991), Articles 7, 10, 119, 105–112: http://www.sierraleonetrc.org

Public Financial Management Act (2016)

Anti-Corruption Act (Amended 2019): http://www.auditservice.gov.sl

Afrobarometer Survey (Round 8, 2022): http://www.afrobarometer.org

Centre for Investigative Journalism Sierra Leone (CIJ-SL): http://www.cijsl.org

Budget Advocacy Network: http://www.bansl.org

World Bank Public Expenditure Review (Sierra Leone, 2022)

IMF Country Report No. 23/61 (Sierra Leone, 2023)

Christopher Clapham (1976): http://www.jstor.org/stable/159853

Jimmy D. Kandeh (1992): http://www.jstor.org/stable/1160868