ROTTEN EGGS FROM RUBBISH DUMP ENTER OUR FOOD CHAIN
We all know that people are daily looking for scraps from the many waste disposal grounds around the city of Freetown. It’s one of those things that we don’t like to talk about but that doesn’t mean some of our people are not rushing down to Bormeh and other such locations to search for whatever they can pick up for the day. From time to time however, people are absolutely scandalized when they see people picking up discarded food with the clear intention to return it to the food chain.
Not too long ago, rotten imported chicken dumped at Bormeh attracted hundreds of people who cleared the stuff and managed to get away before law and order could be restored. The rotten chicken appeared on many dinner tables across the country. In the last few days we saw pictures on social media of people picking up eggs from a rubbish dump. Some of those bad eggs would definitely end up on the dining tables of the good people of Sierra Leone. What’s really happening in this place called Freetown?
1. We hold those charged with the responsibility of disposing of such discarded food personally responsible. What is difficult about crushing rotten chicken in a secluded place to feed pigs? What is so difficult about smashing eggs that they would prefer to take the whole lot to an open space like that?
2. We have reason to believe that when they are asked to destroy such food materials, they simply alert some rough boys to the location of the disposal exercise and basically hand over the discarded cargo to them. Total betrayal of our trust!
3. As for those who recycle such bad items into our food chain, we think they should be ashamed of themselves. They are making quick money at the expense of the health of the nation.
4. We call on the authorities to investigate this affair and bring people to book. We can provide all the drugs and first class hospital facilities in the world but if we are unable to stop people falling ill in the first place, we might as well give up trying to have a healthy nation.
MOBILE HEALTH FACILITY FOR WESTERN RURAL AREA
So the people living in the rural part of the Western Area of Sierra Leone had something to smile about on Monday when Principal put mobile health facilities in motion for them. The Chinese government provided the facility and if properly utilized, health care delivery service to those people would never be the same again. We could tell from what we saw on TV that the people were overwhelmed by that intervention in their health sector.
Some of what we want to say now came through some of the speeches, especially that of Principal.
1. Receiving the mobile clinics is one thing but putting it to the desired effect is another issue completely. We are all Sierra Leoneans and we know how people behave after commissioning ceremonies. We remember how vehicles given to political parties not too long ago ended up transporting bags of charcoal from the provinces to Freetown every weekend.
2. Principal said this and we totally agree that we don’t want Ministry of Health personnel telling the people the vehicle couldn’t move to certain locations for routine work because there was no FUEL. That will be a shame and those responsible should at that point be immediately sacked.
3. We also have to guard against workers who impose unnecessary and unapproved user fees on the people. Such behavior is a key reason why many people run away from the official health service to fall in the hands of quacks. The consequences are clear.
4. Please let’s have a proper maintenance plan for the vehicles. This is so important. We want the vehicles to serve the people well before we retire them. We hope the people of Western Rural would also monitor operations. Good luck.
WHY SHOULD ACC PAY FOR WHAT THEY CAN GET FOR FREE?
We welcome the fact that the ACC is returning to the idea of paying and protecting whistleblowers for calling attention to those stealing or attempting to steal money from the public purse. We don’t necessarily agree with the amount of money people get for their effort or the extent to which the ACC would protect them in case of reprisals but we can give it a try again. The ACC is one of those national institutions that we respect a lot.
Having said that, we must draw the ACC’s attention to the amount of work the media are doing to point in the direction of people who are clearly taking things that belong to the state of Sierra Leone. The ACC has a partnership agreement with our organization, SLAJ, which we are committed to but why is it that our partners sometimes treat the information we publish with zero respect? As a consequence, we are left with no alternative but to believe that the ACC itself has a problem. We are not for one moment suggesting that just because a corruption allegation is published in a newspaper people should be indicted but there are some glaring cases that the ACC has ignored or swept under the carpet that we believe give us some reason for concern.
For example, we recently published an article about a huge amount of money taken from an account at the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank by the SLFA by methods that are unconventional. We know the money belongs to the government of Sierra Leone and we also know that the original signatories to that account were NEVER contacted before the money was taken out. In any case, the SLFA had rejected the money and people who worked for a portion of that money were NEVER paid. We believe that’s irregular and even the SLCB had some explaining to do.
We cannot believe that the ACC is not aware of that publication. In fact we were told by a source that they asked a few questions about the issue and pulled back. What else does Afro Boy want from us in the media? In the last few weeks, we have received some more information on that issue and we will publish it in the best interest of Sierra Leone. Contrary to what was said in public, the money has still NOT been repaid as promised by those who took it away.
We don’t want any whistleblower money from ACC. We want them to do their job.
SALONE PREMIER LEAGUE WITHOUT SEED MONEY OR TROPHY
We are only a few matches now to the end of this much troubled Salone Premier League but already things are building up between the SLFA and the Premier League clubs. The clubs have still not received a cent as seed money to help run their clubs, nor have they been told what to expect from participating in the league or what the eventual winner would take home. Now, this is what we call DARKNESS.
Why is it that when it comes to football administration in this country, we experience so much uncertainty? More than a dozen Premier League clubs started a league without being told the full package. They have bought players, paid acceptable wages in this country receiving only pittance as seed money in the first round. With the second round drawing to a close questions are all over social media about the unavailability of seed money for the clubs and the money that winners would receive at the end of the tournament. All we’ve heard from the SLFA is that they would LOAN some money to the Premier League Board to run the second half of this league. We won’t even discuss that.
We find ourselves in a strange situation. We call it total darkness. The SLFA should throw some light around the place now on these issues. It’s urgent.
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