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Profile Dr. Alpha Tejan Wurie-SLPP Flag Bearer Aspirant |
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Written by By Dr. Alpha Tejan Wurie
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Wednesday, 01 September 2010 13:47 |
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Background
The name Alpha Tejan Wurie rings a bell in both SLPP and national circles for very many reasons. It is a household name that reverberates in every corner of the country whenever it is mentioned. This was the man who took education from the doldrums in the country and raised it to a pinnacle, and was on the verge of taking the next big step when the party lost power in 2007.
Born on the 13th November 1955, to a strong SLPP family, Alpha Tejan Wurie can be described as the embodiment of
everything virtuous the SLPP is looking for in its leadership quest. He is of a rich SLPP tradition that places value on
excellence, education and respect. Alpha Wurie hails from a politically conscious family that has contributed in no small measure to the general Sierra Leone society. His father late Ali Dausy Wurie represented the party in the Port Loko District Council and later as an Alderman in the Freetown Municipality. His uncle the late Dr. Amadu Wurie was a founding member of the party and the 1st Minister of Education after independence. Thus Alpha Wurie is no stranger in the Sierra Leone
People’s Party(SLPP).
He had his academic seed planted at the Holy Trinity School and Wilberforce Primary Schools, germinated in the great Bo School and the revered Sierra Leone Grammar School and blossomed at the esteemed Fourah Bay College, where he graduated in 1978 with B.Sc. (Hons) Chemistry, second class first division. This was a time when the epithet of Athens of West Africa was richly deserved by FBC, for the quality of its graduates matched and even bettered graduates from other universities in the world. To have passed through FBC with flying colours in those times, one needed to be on top of your academic work while mixing with social and political asides. Alpha Wurie was able to effectively balance that act without a tincture of hindrance t his academic output. He later proceeded to Brunel University, Uxbridge in the United Kingdom where he obtained his doctorate in chemistry.
A good profile of Alpha Wurie must embrace some history as he is a derivation of a social culture that encompasses all regions, tribes and religions. His educational sojourns gave him a taste of Christianity (Holy Trinity and CMS Grammar School), while still firmly rooted in Islam, which is his first religious contact. From the cosmopolitan schools of the western area, he moved to the more traditionally steeped Bo School, where he learnt to live with all shades of people irrespective of region, race or religion. He is intent upon appearance and conscious of tradition.
At the time when the country was under the virtual dictatorship of Siaka Stevens, it was difficult to get young men to thump their chests in Freetown for the SLPP. Alpha Wurie joined the campaign team of an SLPP aspirant in the 1977 elections, Eustace King in Central One. He existed in spirit, was visible in flesh and constantly paraded the corridors of FBC Hostels preaching his party’s ideology, without recourse for the consequences. It was no surprise therefore when the NPRC lifted the ban on political activities in 1995, he was one of the very first to seek patron membership of his beloved SLPP, and began to mobilize support for the party in Fourah Bay College, where he was lecturing then in the Chemistry Department. Contributions to the Party
Alpha Wurie has played a pivotal role in the resuscitation of the SLPP between 1995 and 1996. The party had just been given a fresh breath of air by the NPRC junta, but its history was distant in the minds of the youthful population even of those at the citadel of learning at FBC. In a virtuoso display of political dexterity and historical acumen, he succeeded in sketching a graphic picture of the party to the student body then that the 100% literate body was able to visualize what SLPP was like and it attracted huge following afterwards. He chaired the re-launch of the party at the Adjai Crowther Amphitheatre with panache and left no doubt in the minds of students that it was the party they should follow. In the elections that followed in 1996, the SLPP won by a large margin at FBC, thanks to his mastery of political guise and solid personal touch. His financial contributions to the party are immeasurable and transcend party dues. Together with a few people, they bankrolled the party’s campaign in the entire Port Loko District in 1996. He covered every blade of grass in the Port Loko District to ensure recognition for the party in an area where the party has never fared well before then. Financial contributions aside, Alpha Wurie has visibility and palpability in SLPP functions that few can match. His science background has given him an insight into the party’s path for victory in the 2012 elections, with reflections in the past to see where it went wrong and lost power in 2007. The eloquence of his speech while delivering the keynote address in Makeni on Valentine’s Day in 2009 endeared many to his suavity ad genius. This speech showed his research capability, political shrewdness and mental alacrity to the issues that led to the demise of the party while also charting a new path for regaining political power. Beyond that, the speech laid the foundation for the unity in the party while he served as the oasis of stability. He displayed a similar trait in the Kenema Convention, when tensions were at fever pitch and almost boiled over; his expose fused the tension and paved the way for the election of an executive that is lauded by all for its all-embracing nature.
Personal strengths
Dr. Alpha Wurie possesses qualities and strengths that make him a formidable contender for the leadership of the party. From the paths already trodden by Alpha Wurie, it is as clear as crystal that his candidature can serve as an important socializing avenue while also playing a vital role in ensuring cohesion among the party’s top echelon and the rank and file and reposition it for victory in the 2012 elections. He has physical touch and a down to earth attitude that will break the myth that the party is too much of an elitist one. He is a man of even temperament whose political tutelage has imbued him with the virtues of tolerance, patience, guile and a willingness to adapt, his personal predilections and pride notwithstanding.
His 11 years of dedicated service to party and country has demonstrated the above and given him cast experience in governance and administration. Backed by a strong political base that cuts through the western area, where h was born, the south where he acquired secondary education and vast array of friends and the north where he hails from, accompanied by strong international connections, Alpha Wurie can serve as the buffer in SLPP, an oasis of stability and the key to success in the 2012 elections.
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U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk completed a community relations project |
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Written by SL News
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Wednesday, 11 August 2010 17:21 |
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FREETOWN, Sierra Leone- Crewmembers from the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk completed a community relations project at the Freetown Christian Faith Rescue Orphanage in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Monday, Aug. 9.
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Water Quay Messing Up WFP |
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Written by Silas Gbandia
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Wednesday, 16 June 2010 13:43 |
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Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) shipped twenty two containers loaded with fertilizer totaling 400metric tons that arrived at the Queen Elizabeth II Quay, Freetown in April 2010. Despite moves by the World Food Programme (WFP) staff to distribute the fertilizer before the end of May to catch up with the planting season, only six were cleared within the 21 days grace period. And six containers are still at the port.
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Drivers Union Scribe in Corruption Scandal |
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Written by Abubakarr Kamara
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Wednesday, 16 June 2010 12:26 |
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Executive members of the Motor Drivers and General Transport Workers Union are now in disarray as allegations of corruption made by the Regional Secretary-South, Chief Moses M. Sandy against the General Secretary, Sheik Imam K. Kamara have rocked the administrative wing of the Union. Chief Sandy was implicated in duplication of manifest sent from the Union to the Southern Region Branch for sale to drivers plying various routes in that part of the country. The report states that Chief Sandy photocopied these manifest and sent them to Gendema collecting more than Two Million Leones as proceeds from the sales. This fraud was later discovered and the reports alongside the evidences were brought to Freetown for the Central Executive Committee to take action.
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