By Abdulai Fasineh Dumbuya
The Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG), Brima Jah has warned individuals that he claimed are behind plans to stage illegal demonstration in the country between the 7th and 14th August 2023 that they could face the law.
He said this at the weekly Police press briefing at their Headquarters in Freetown on Thursday 10th August 2023.
According to him, those fanning demonstrations without due process are a “handful” of individuals based overseas calling for the said demonstration.
"We have not received any request for peaceful demonstration from anybody and all we have been seeing is where individuals take to social media saying that they are calling for demonstration," the officer said.
He noted that social media has been utilised wrongly, with many illicit statements directed at state institutions. The AIG said the government has beefed up security structures, and that guaranteeing the rights of individuals is an utmost priority to the police and other state institutions such as the Office of National Security.
Recalling the 10th August 2022 violent protests that claimed the lives of civilians and police officers, AIG Jah admonished citizens to refrain from participating in any act that will undermine the safety as well as the security of the country, adding that "the rights of one person end when the rights of another person start".
He added: “The constitution has provided us with rights and while exercising our rights, we should not hamper others. There is a limit to freedom of expression when it comes to law".
The Regional Commander of Police Freetown East, Dr. John Martin Senesie, said his team is vigilant to the issue of demonstration and that they are keen on the protection of the people. "People should not be afraid to go about their businesses, and the police are very watchful to the core," he said.
John Tumbay, Police Regional Commander West, said that his team together with their counterparts in the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces ( RSLAF) have teamed up to see that citizens are protected. "We have put barricades at night in order to search vehicles, bike riders, to ensure the safety of the people," he said.
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