Veteran politician and senior member of the All People’s Congress (APC), Hon. Ibrahim Ben Kargbo, has mounted a strong defense of the APC’s decade-long leadership, describing it as a period marked by transparent governance, press freedom, and genuine crisis response.

In a recent interview, the former Minister of Information dismissed assertions that the APC government subjected Sierra Leoneans to unnecessary hardship, insisting that the challenges faced during its tenure were largely the result of external shocks, not poor governance.

“There was no austerity until Ebola hit,” Hon. Kargbo clarified. “At one point, Sierra Leone was the fastest-growing economy in the world. The Ebola outbreak shattered that momentum, and we had no option but to declare austerity—which we never concealed from the people.”

He emphasized that unlike other administrations that downplay difficulties, the APC was honest with the public about national challenges. “When we have difficulty, we say it out. We don’t pretend like everything is okay,” he said.

Hon. Kargbo also highlighted the APC’s commitment to press freedom and democratic norms, noting that during their time in office, no journalist was arrested or sent to Pademba Road Prison—a testament, he said, to the party’s respect for civil liberties and media independence.

Responding to questions about the APC’s loss in the 2018 elections, he argued that the party’s exit from power was not a rejection of its policies or performance, but rather a natural desire for political change after ten years of leadership. “People wanted something new. That’s democracy,” he noted.