WHY SLAM-GLOBAL EXISTS – WE WERE CREATED TO STAND WHERE THE PEOPLE NEED SOMEONE TO STAND – Dr Alfred A. Veenod Fullah – September 19, 2026

Distinguished guests, members of SLAM-GLOBAL, friends of Sierra Leone, ladies and gentlemen: Today is a day of celebration. But before we celebrate where SLAM-GLOBAL is going, we must remember why SLAM-GLOBAL exists. We did not come together because Sierra Leone needed another organisation. We came together because too many Sierra Leoneans needed a voice. (Photo: L-R- Dr Robert Kargbo, Dr Fullah and Mr Santigie Koroma).

We came together because somewhere there is a mother crying and wondering whether anyone hears her. Somewhere there is a journalist wondering whether telling the truth may cost freedom, safety, or even life. Somewhere there is a young person with talent, intelligence, and ambition, but without opportunity.

Somewhere a family is asking whether justice applies equally to the powerful and the powerless. That person matters. That person has dignity. That person has rights. And that person has a voice. SLAM-GLOBAL’s responsibility is not to replace that voice. Our responsibility is to amplify it. WHAT WE HAVE BUILT.

Our principles are simple: trust. Unity. Social Justice. But principles written on letterhead mean little unless they become action. Since our formation, SLAM-GLOBAL has sought to speak when silence would have been easier. We have issued public statements, policy analyses, and international advocacy letters.

We have raised questions about democratic accountability, electoral integrity, justice, human rights, and the strength of our national institutions. We have engaged citizens, civil society, policymakers and communities, always insisting that Sierra Leone can do better. But our greatest accomplishment is not how many letters we have written.

It is not how many press releases we have issued. It is not how many important people know our name. 3 Our greatest accomplishment is that when people believed nobody was listening, somebody stood up and said: We hear you. WE STAND FOR HUMAN LIFE. Human life is sacred. A Sierra Leonean life does not become less valuable because that person belongs to APC.

And it does not become more valuable because that person belongs to SLPP. Before APC, before SLPP, before government, before opposition – we are human beings. You can replace a government. You can replace a political leader. You can rebuild a building. You can rewrite a law. You can hold another election. But you cannot replace a human life.

That is why, when people are detained, victimised, intimidated or denied their rights, our concern must go beyond political convenience. Justice means due process. Justice means accountability. Justice means restoring dignity. Opening a prison door is important. But restoring a human being’s dignity is greater still.

Disagreement must never become a crime. We can disagree. We should disagree sometimes. That is democracy. You may disagree with me tonight, and I will defend your right to disagree with me. Democracy is not demonstrated by how we treat people who agree with us. Democracy is demonstrated by how we treat people who do not.

If I only respect your freedom when you praise me, then I do not believe in freedom. If I only support journalism when journalists write things I like, then I do not believe in a free press. If I only support justice when the victim belongs to my political party, then I do not believe in justice. I believe in convenience.

SLAM-GLOBAL must never become an organisation of convenient principles. WE MUST ALSO CARE FOR OUR OWN. We have also tried, where we can, to care for members facing hardship, injustice, and difficulties. An advocacy movement cannot proclaim compassion to the world while ignoring suffering inside its own house.

Movements are built through relationships. Social justice must begin with social responsibility. WE ARE NOT A POLITICAL PARTY SLAM-GLOBAL is not APC. SLAM-GLOBAL is not SLPP. When government does what is right, we should have the courage to say it. When governments do what is wrong, we should have the courage to challenge them.

When opposition acts responsibly, we should acknowledge it. When opposition acts irresponsibly, we should say so. Our loyalty is not to the colour of a political party. Our loyalty is to principle and to the people of Sierra Leone. Engagement is not endorsement. An invitation is not validation.

Recognising a public office is not surrendering our right to question the person occupying that office. Talking to government does not make us government. Talking to opposition does not make us opposition. Dialogue is not capitulation. If we only talk to people who already agree with us, we are not building bridges.

We are building echo chambers. THE PEOPLE’S TEST: At SLAM-GLOBAL, we must keep returning to one simple question: What does this mean for the ordinary Sierra Leonean? Governments may count meetings. Citizens count meals. Governments may count conferences. Parents count school fees. Governments may count policies.

Young graduates count jobs. Governments may celebrate announcements. A sick mother asks whether medicine is available at the hospital. Governments are often judged by what they announce. The people judge them by what they deliver. Ask the market woman: Has life become more affordable? Ask the farmer: Can I produce, transport and sell what I grow?

Ask the teacher: Are our children learning? Ask the young graduate: Can talent become opportunity? Ask the journalist: Can I investigate without fear? Ask every voter: Does my vote count, and is my choice respected? Free and fair elections are not an APC thing or an SLPP thing. They are an expression of the sovereignty of the people.

The ballot is the ordinary citizen saying: This is my voice. This is my choice. This is my country. History remembers speeches, but citizens remember whether their lives improved. WHY America? WHY NOW? Sierra Leone’s diaspora contains extraordinary human capital – doctors, scientists, nurses, teachers, entrepreneurs, engineers, lawyers, drivers, researchers, business owners, students, public servants and parents who sacrifice every day for families at home.

Our diaspora must become more than a source of remittances. We must become a source of ideas. A source of accountability. A source of investment. A source of knowledge. A source of mentorship. And above all, a source of hope. This U.S. launch is therefore not merely another ceremony. It is an invitation to connect our freedom, our talents and our opportunities here to the advancement of Sierra Leone.

A CHALLENGE TO EVERY MEMBER: Do not wear SLAM as a title. Live it as a responsibility. If we say Trust, then let us be trustworthy. If we say Unity, then let us resist tribalism, regionalism and political hatred. If we say Social Justice, then we cannot remain comfortable when another human being is denied dignity. When you see injustice, do not first ask: Which party does the victim belong to?

Ask: What happened to this human being? Justice that changes according to political colour is not justice. A PROMISE FROM America To the market woman in Freetown, the farmer in Koinadugu, the fisherman along our coast, the teacher in the classroom, the unemployed graduate searching for opportunity, the journalist trying to tell the truth, and the citizen afraid to speak:

We see you. Your voice matters. Your dignity matters. Your future matters. And SLAM-GLOBAL will continue trying to amplify your voice. 9 THE BEGINNING, NOT THE DESTINATION Tonight is not our destination. Tonight is another beginning. Our success will not be measured by the photographs we take, the decorations in this room, the dignitaries who attend, or the applause we receive.

The real question is: What happened because we were here? Did we build bridges? Did we defend someone who could not defend himself or herself? Did we educate a child, protect a journalist, challenge an injustice, create an opportunity, or help Sierra Leone become more peaceful, prosperous, democratic and humane? That is the standard.

We will engage – but we will not surrender our independence. We will disagree – but we will not dehumanise one another. We will criticise – but we will also offer solutions. We will defend human life – regardless of political affiliation. We will stand for those whose voices are being drowned out. And when injustice asks us, ‘Who sent you?’ our answer will be: The conscience of our people sent us.

When division asks, ‘Which side are you on?’ we will answer: We are on the side of Sierra Leone. May history say of us: We did not remain silent. We stood. We spoke. We served. We built. And above all, we remembered that every Sierra Leonean life matters. Trust. Unity. Social Justice. Our Sierra Leone. Our responsibility. Thank you, and may God bless the people of Sierra Leone.