A Story of Dedication and Service

Part 3: A Road to Redemption—How Dr. Ibrahim Bangura Revived APC’s Fortunes in Mabontor

By: Ben Turay, (The Ataya Pot)

In the simmering months leading up to Sierra Leone’s 2018 general elections, while most politicians in Freetown were tightening their schedules for high-profile meetings and photo ops, Dr. Ibrahim Bangura, today the leading contender for the APC’s 2028 presidential ticket, was veering off course, quite literally.

On the eve of a planned engagement with senior United Nations officials in the capital, Dr. Bangura received an urgent call. Discontent was brewing in Mabontor, the main town of Kafe Simiria Chiefdom in Tonkolili District. Locals, frustrated by years of development challenges were threatening to boycott the 2018 election. Being a stronghold of the APC, the implications were clear.

Without hesitation, Bangura, being politically savvy and strategically minded, postponed his diplomatic appointment and made the bumpy, night-bound journey into the heart of northern Sierra Leone. Mabontor is roughly 15 miles from Magburaka, the district capital. But due to appalling road conditions: deep gullies, seasonal swamps, and long stretches of washed-out tracks, the journey takes more than an hour by motorbike. In 2018, the cost of such a trip was Le130,000 (old notes), a staggering fee for many locals whose livelihoods depend on subsistence farming.

At the community center, Bangura met with elders and disgruntled residents from nearby villages: Maforaka, Makama, Makonthaday, Mayosa, Simiria, Mathapy, Sanda, Fothaneh, Makellifa, Nenekoro, Kathatha, Masekory and Mansonbiri. Their primary grievance? The dilapidated Mabontor–Magburaka road, a lifeline for farmers, traders, students, and health workers, had been neglected for decades.

Dr. Bangura listened. Then, he spoke not as a politician but as a fellow Sierra Leonean who understood their pain.

“The road is your artery to opportunity,” he acknowledged. “If we expect loyalty, we must return it in kind, with infrastructure, support, and dignity.”

He made a solemn commitment: the next APC government would prioritize the Mabontor road. And he didn’t leave empty-handed promises behind.

Instead, Dr. Bangura donated personal funds to support over 40 struggling farmers, many of them widows, orphans, and breadwinners grappling with the lingering trauma of Ebola and the daily grind of rural poverty.

That thoughtful intervention, like many others he has rendered for and on behalf of the APC, notwithstanding the fact that he has never held an official government appointment, testifies to Dr. Bangura’s unmatched commitment, enduring dedication, and unwavering love for his party.

Follow “A Story of Dedication and Service” as we continue to explore Dr. Bangura’s transformative journey across Sierra Leone.

Ben Turay served as deputy campaign lead in Dr. Bangura’s 2018 and 2023 campaigns. He holds an MBA in Marketing Management, a BA in Procurement and Logistics, and diplomas in Legal Studies and Journalism.