By Joseph Sevalie in Mattru
Hundreds of youth, mostly commercial motorbike riders, joined security personnel of the SSGI security firm in Moriba Town, Bonthe district on Saturday to protest against the Sierra Rutile company and top officials of SSGI over the mysterious death of a security guard, Sowahibu Kallon aka Lahai.
He was a native of Kabati village in Jong chiefdom.
Sources say that on Thursday 23 January 2014, Kallon was posted to a bush within the mining operational area to look after a place where the expatriate staff of the company usually go to rest by the river, after work.
On Friday morning his colleagues who went to replace him discovered that he was nowhere to be found and all he saw was his uniform and his cap in the river. He ran into the town and reported the incident prompting a team of security personnel to be sent on a search mission.
After the whole night of fruitless search Kallon was found dead in a river within the mining operational area with his tongue and his private part removed.
The discovery led to the youth and security firm workers taking to the streets shouting "enough it is enough".
The angry protesters, who said this was the fourth time such an incident had happened to a guard, burned down a company tipper, forcefully opened two 40Ft containers full of rice which was a monthly supply for the workers, and vandalised the Sierra Rutile senior staff quarters at Mobinbe.
Police in Moriba used teargas to disperse the protesters who kept advancing until the arrival of troop reinforcement of armed OSD police from Bo led by Yetay Yetay who used live rounds.
The remains of the guard were taken to Bo for a post mortem and have been handed over to the parents for burial.
The Rutile management would not talk to journalists.
(C) Politico 28/01/14
