TRACE Joenal: Freetown Cotton Tree Stinks

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Hello folks how are you doing? TRACE Joenal has been closely monitoring the activities around the famous Freetown Cotton Tree from the day Mayor Yvonne Akie Sawyer took over.

The nature of the Cotton Tree is one that sends a very bad signal that Sierra Leone is not ready to attract tourists.

The Cotton Tree which is known commonly as a kapok tree is a historic symbol of Freetown, Sierra Leone capital city.

Let us go down memory lane: According to legend, the "Cotton Tree" gained importance in 1792 when a group of former African American slaves, who had gained their freedom by fighting for the British during the American War of Independence, settled at the site of modern Freetown.

These Black Loyalist settlers, called "Nova Scotians" because they came from Nova Scotia after leaving the United States and before they decided to go back to Africa or, "Navatians" in Sierra Leone, founded Freetown on March 11th 1792. From that time the majestic tree stands in the centre of the oldest part in Freetown and is the most visible landmark in Freetown.

TRACE Joenal learnt that the exact age of the Tree is unknown but has undisputedly stood there for over 200 years. It is believed by some to have been the resting place for the Black Poor when they arrived in Sierra Leone in 1787. They apparently rested and prayed underneath the shade of the tree.

"The Cotton Tree is synonymous with Freetown and has inspired many works of art." TRACE Joenal was told.

There are lot of things that pay homage to the Cotton Tree such as the Visit Sierra Leone logo, the Cotton Tree magazine and the Cotton Tree Pharmacy, among others.

The Freetown Cotton Tree during the dry season and harmattan sheds its leaves but in the rains the tree can be admired in all its splendour. Its magnetic pull makes it an attractive sight for visiting tourists.

One can't dispute the fact that the Cotton Tree has become the home of bats and vultures over decades and those bats and vultures are part of the problems affecting that Tree but they could not be done away with.

The Cotton Tree got a facelift by Africell mobile phone Company as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility. Through their intervention, the life span of the Tree has increased because it was well decorated.

The once dark Cotton Tree gained light again and after some months, the company handed it over to the Freetown City Council which is charged with the responsibility of taking care of the city.

When Africell was managing it, the Cotton Tree was kept clean but as soon as it was handed over to FCC, the first thing TRACE Joenal noticed was that the fountain has been switched off and so also was the lights went off. This downward trend continued until finally they stopped the daily cleaning around the tree.

TRACE Joenal noticed that after the early "Nova Scotian" settlers, we have the indigenous Africans in March 11th 1792 and later the bats, now the latest settlers are the physically challenged and the insane. These two groups are adding to the pollution to the Tree.
Beside the defecation of the bats, there are other defecation and urination that is going on by the latest two settlers adding to the stench. The Freetown Cotton Tree acts as a hub to many important places in the city such as State House, Law Court, Central bank and Police Headquarters among other important places in the Central Business Districts.
If it can't be attractive what else should be attractive in the CBD.

When TRACE Joenal was a kid, he learnt that people were not allowed to even carry load on their heads while passing through the Cotton Tree environs. At that time the Metropolitan police were very vibrant like the Mayors but that has changed and become history.

If people were not allowed to carry loads on their heads at that time means nobody was allowed to settle around the famous Freetown Cotton Tree.
Most income earning places are places that are attractive to tourists. Why should other settlers be allowed to settle and mess it up with reckless abandon? There is a need to relocate the disable and mad people among others that are sitting or using the Cotton Tree surrounding as shelter. If the Council and Central Government are talking about rebranding the city, Cotton Tree must be a start.
TRACE Joenal wants to see changes in that surrounding as a start of the rebranding process. See you on the other side.
Ibrahim Joenal Sesay is an Investigative Journalist and Human Right Activist working for SALONE TIMES NEWSPAPER as a Senior Staff Writer. salonesij@gmail.com | +232 (0) 88/76 447 444
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