ARMED FORCES DAY: GOD BLESS OUR SECURITY FORCES
As a nation we should only say thanks to our security forces for keeping us safe so far from all modern day dangers like international terrorism and kidnappings. They have also played their part in national emergencies like floods, mudslides and fires. We are not the most secure country in the world but we thank God for his mercies and the work of our security forces.
When King Messi declared 18th February as Armed Forces Day, we were hoping it will not just be a day of saying thanks and perhaps giving our service personnel some food and all that but that the day will help us think more deeply about how to make the lives of our men and women in uniform more meaningful especially when in service but more importantly when they retire. By the time King Messi left office after almost 11 years, very little improvement was realized. Well, the King re-introduced the one bag of rice idea for the personnel of our security forces. That’s not a bad idea despite all the challenges especially with the police supplies that are normally late.
When Principal took over, he said a lot about improving the circumstances of our security officers and for now we can mention a few things as very solid achievements aimed at bringing to reality this campaign promise.
1. The Chinese government is constructing living quarters for service personnel at Wilberforce barracks. When completed by the end of this year, it will go a long way to solve the housing problems facing soldiers. We are happy that Principal actually asked for help in that area. He didn’t ask for a mansion on Kamboi Hills as his retirement home. The Chinese would have gladly done that.
2. Queen Fatima is now working with a private business group to building a HUNDRED bed hospital for service personnel and their children and indeed community people at 34 Military Hospital. As far as we are concerned those two projects would go a very long way to convince our soldiers in particular that we care for them.
3. We also note that JJ Blood announced a 75% salary increase for soldiers over three years. We hope that answers some immediate welfare concerns they have. In this pandemic world economies are collapsing and even powerful nations are feeling the pinch. God Bless our security forces.
HEAVY DUTY TRUCKS STILL USE JUI-REGENT ROAD DESPITE BAN
When the Chinese contractors completed work on the Jui-Regent road in 2014, very bold signposts were erected along the route prohibiting use of the road by trucks weighing more than 10 tons or vehicles carrying sand, wood and stones. Trailer trucks and heavy machinery must keep off, so it was sanctioned to be.
All those trucks banned from that busy route linking east and west Freetown are not complying with the regulations anymore.
At night well-organized scenes unfold at the various Police checkpoints; the loaded trucks would queue and wait for ‘final instructions’ before they are allowed to continue their journey. It came as a surprise to hear an official of the Sierra Leone Road Safety Corps admit that fatal accidents along the route have increased in recent times blaming some on heavy trucks. He was gracious enough to acknowledge that the truck drivers are flouting the order but never explained what they would do to ensure compliance.
Perhaps he never wanted to offend IG Sovula’s men. And so the lives of people will continue to be risked as a result of palms being greased. The road itself is favored by commuters and motorists as a more convenient alternative to travel from Adonkia to Waterloo in a comparatively shorter time. At Grafton checkpoint the sight of one of the signposts almost uprooted and leaning back and nearly swallowed up by tall grass, could not give a better picture of abandonment and rejection of the very message it carries.
KOTOR WURIE IS THERE NO MIDAS TOUCH FOR LIMKOKWING?
Kotor Alpha is getting a lot of praise for applying a kind of Midas touch to the protracted strike action by lecturers in all state universities and technical colleges. In the last month of Gbakima’s leadership of that ministry things had gone so bad that even Principal was beginning to feel the political weight of the failure to anticipate and deal with that strike. When Principal acted, he cleared that ministry and the ministry of Lands where Sandy was behaving like the Lord of all.
So Kotor has dealt with the institutions of higher learning owned by government now he has to turn to that inherited mess at Limkokwing.
We don’t want to go over all the arguments concerning that matter because we have done that many times. All we want now is a LASTING SOLUTION. There are many scenarios to play with regarding that matter and we believe Kotor Wurie has had enough time to read his papers. No more time to waste.
We know the very bad things the late man did with that private university but our brothers and sisters are now caught up in the mess and we can’t pretend they are not part of us. We urge Kotor Wurie to apply the Midas touch right know. We will be back with this issue.
AVOID PEKITOES RIGHT NOW, AVOID JAIL: STAY SAFE
As they say on the streets of Freetown these day, DE GAME DON BIG O on this issue so men should be extremely careful. One small joke in one little corner could end with an indictment and TEN YEARS at Pademba Road. The best way to avoid a date with that court is to:
1. Stay off this PEKITO business. Don’t even encourage that traditional thing where parents literally hand their children over in several guises. This court is very dangerous.
2. If you want to spend some cash helping young people please go to Don Bosco or SOS and do blind adoption. In other words fund a child in any of those places without seeing them. Those are good organizations. Your money is safe.
3. Don’t go into any situation where PEKITOES will be hanging around doing their selfies. Being misunderstood could raise serious alarm. If you see them near your house lock your doors and have a sound sleep or run.
4. Social media friendships with people you don’t know MUST STOP now. That’s how things develop.
5. Totally avoid this side chick thing. If you think it’s impossible, then we may sooner rather than later meet at this new court.
165 WATER COMPANIES OPERATING BUT ONLY 15 REGISTERED?
It beggars belief to know that of the recorded 165 water companies in the country; only 15 are registered with the Electricity and Water Commission! Most of the water companies are operated by local Sierra Leoneans which is good for the local content policy but such a revelation has brought again into the open the question of the brazen defiance of laid down rules by our entrepreneurs. These are the people who complain of not getting loans from our local banks. A simple thing as registering their businesses with a legitimate regulatory body set up by government they wouldn’t do.
An official from the Commission was even in doubt about the quality of the water some of these companies sell to the public. We’ve always had very strong reservations about the hygiene standards in the processing of some of the products we consume from these water companies. They are all over the place and some operate in dark and isolated places. Health experts say typhoid is generally caused by drinking of contaminated water; and that is why we will doubt the filtration process of some these companies. Some of their names are comical or meaningless, and their plants are nothing but sweatshops period!
The plastic packaged water is even handled poorly in many cases in the final production line; the sachets would be strewn on dirty floors and then placed into bundles, ready for the market. Most times consumers hardly wipe the sachets, perfect recipe for typhoid and other intestinal infections. We believe Standards Bureau should have a big say in this. Maybe they should conduct unannounced raids to uncover the litany of unhygienic processing of water by many of these companies we are talking about. Now it looks as if in every street corner there is a full megaphone blast from vehicles as they noisily market their products, very annoying.
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