MARIJUANA SMUGGLING FROM SIERRA LEONE IS GROWING
Yet again we have seen pictures of the hardworking minister of the northwest region standing over a huge consignment of processed and nicely wrapped marijuana that some young men were allegedly trying to smuggle across to neighboring Guinea. We don’t know if that’s the destination but anything is possible once the consignment lands in a country with so many land borders in remote locations and corrupt security officers.
First of all we congratulate our minister for the northwest who has supervised the confiscation all sorts of contraband goods that people have smuggled in or out of Sierra Leone using the land routes in her area of responsibility. Having said that we believe this country must do something decisive about the marijuana trade that is definitely on the increase in some parts of our countryside. And we should attach no emotions to that action. We have not said there should be no political consideration because that will be an absolute waste of time. We are living in a country where one’s choice of soft drink is viewed in political terms. But here’s why we say this:
1. When the police tried to smash a marijuana production and distribution enterprise somewhere in Tonkolili district about a year or so ago, much of the debate focused on the police tactics instead of the evil marijuana trade. We know that the death of a young guy in the process changed the narrative but that was a totally missed opportunity.
2. We will soon get to a point at which ordinary Sierra Leoneans going about their normal business in neighboring countries will be arrested by the authorities and treated like drug traffickers. This is really not looking good.
3. Beyond our immediate neighborhood, a Sierra Leonean passport will trigger an immediate alarm at airports about drug trafficking. It’s that serious. This is very much on the cards if we allow certain parts of this country to be convinced that their economic prosperity depended entirely on producing and selling drugs.
4. We also believe that there will come a time, maybe sooner than we project, when the drug kings in the areas we are talking about, will set up zones that will be no-go area for our security forces. They will be armed and bold. They will be willing to attack our forces – something like Columbia and Mexico.
5. Does anybody know what is happening to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency? We certainly have no idea. Please send us what you know. See our contacts at the back of this paper. Thank in advance.
CROOKS COLLECTING REGISTRATION FEES FOR NACSA COVID – 19 MONEY
This may be entirely out of the hands of NACSA but the fact that criminals have now started collecting money from the unsuspecting poor by promising to help them access NACSA’s bailout cash leaves us very worried that we could witness some law and order problems in some very difficult communities around Freetown. We can confirm that in at least three locations our attention was drawn to mean with plastic bags full of TWO THOUSAND LEONE notes collected from each person they registered for the NACSA money. We don’t need to be told that NACSA knew nothing about that nonsense. This was a brazen criminal enterprise underway in broad daylight with the poorest of the poor paying up in great expectation.
At this point we call on IG Sovula to deal with the criminal act right now. And we don’t think it’s even difficult to catch the criminals because they operate openly and are known by the people paying the so-called registration fee. We warn the IG not to wait until disappointed people turn on each other and unleash violence in our communities because at that point we will hold him personally responsible for fiddling while Rome went up in flames.
As far as we know this is an unprecedented cash transfer initiative targeted at cushioning the effect of the COVID – 19 pandemic on the most needy people in this country, regardless of political affiliation. So far it has gone reasonably well but pretending as if we are not seeing people taking advantage of the beneficiaries in this way is a recipe for chaos. Why would NACSA collect TWO THOUSAND LEONES from somebody before giving that same person ONE MILLION THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND LEONES? If that was the case wouldn’t it be best for NACSA to simply subtract the so-called registration fee from the COVID -19 support cash? And why would they ask strangers to collect the money for them. Let’s stop the criminals NOW.
WHERE IS THE GREENBELT ON WESTERN AREA MOUNTAINS?
Successive governments in post-conflict Sierra Leone have made quite a fuss about keeping the mountains along the Western Area green and free from encroachment by people desperate to build houses of all shapes and sizes. To stop the depletion of the forested areas, particular points were identified and labeled as Green Belt. No building of any sort was to be built on the greenbelt and that was the emphasis from the onset. Structures found to be in places in clear breach of the order, were to be brought down. We were informed they wanted to protect the forested areas and in a broader sense, our eco-system.
Men and women in jungle green military-style uniform called forest guards were recruited and tasked with patrolling the mountains including other forest reserves in far flung areas. But many people are not sure these guards have been effective enough in getting encroachers off the greenbelt. You go to a place called New London close to Jui/Kossoh Town in the east, the very dam that has been serving water to residents down Kossoh Town has dried up because houses have been built around it and the pillaging of the forest is continuing further up the hills around. The water catchment surroundings are gone in man’s mad rush and recklessness to erect their sometimes ugly looking houses.
Forest guards will tell you that they are hamstrung in effecting control because of the attitude of guys at lands ministry. Cutting trees for coal and firewood up the Freetown Mountains happened way back in the past but it wasn’t as ferocious and damaging an act as that of people now building houses with not even a little care for nature not to talk of the law. It would make sense if the authorities erect pillars that are brightly colored and obviously visible to even us down the mountains, to define the area of the greenbelt. By so doing, encroachment could be seen from far away by even the visually impaired. For now we are bold enough to say the greenbelt is not practically visible or workable!
BRING BACK THE LEAGUE - WE REALLY MISS MUSA TOMBO
Soon our queen will have nowhere to hide because football is about to resume in South Africa, the country with the biggest Coronavirus case load in Africa. At that point our queen MUST open up our game and then go for the ELECTIVE CONGRESS. Principal says we may have to live with the Coronavirus until a vaccine is found. We agree.
The point is we want the league to resume for many reasons but the main ones are:
1. It will mark the return to the new normal in all its forms at the SLFA
2. The ELECTIVE CONGRESS will have to go ahead before we reach another August
3. Then of course we will all return to the stadium under strict social distancing to watch Musa Tombo and friends.
We absolutely miss Musa Tombo. Here is this guy who left this country with his eyes wide open, traveled to Sweden to complete a professional contract only to return to this country after a few days telling the world he preferred to stay here and help our national team qualify for continental competitions. The first thing he did on landing at Lungi Airport was to eat crain-crain and rice at a local cookery shop with cameras rolling. Why didn’t this guy go straight home and have a private conversation with his family after the greatest U-turn ever in our football history?
The thing became even more ridiculous when the guy who abandoned a much sought after contract to come home and play for the national team skipped the team’s training camp on the pretext that he lost an uncle, only for him to turn in a match in a small time league played on a dusty field in the east of Freetown.
Please this league must resume. We want to see our man in action. We will enjoy football and of course have some more issues to write about.
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