Feature

By Joseph Lamin Kamara

The country office of the international nonprofit organization Search For Common Ground (SFCG) is protecting the rights of landowners in three districts in Sierra Leone through a project sponsored by the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA).

By Allieu Sahid Tunkara

Amidst the long queue of weary-looking passengers at Regent Road in central Freetown, sweating profusely is Ibrahim Kargbo. They are eagerly waiting for the next available Poda Poda (commercial transport vehicle).

In the meantime, they are discussing the failures or mistakes or inactions that allow commercial transport drivers exploit commuters, forcing thousands of Sierra Leoneans to hassle daily for transport, with impunity.

By Allieu Sahid Tunkara

Amidst the long queue of weary-looking passengers at Regent Road in central Freetown, sweating profusely is Ibrahim Kargbo. They are eagerly waiting for the next available Poda Poda (commercial transport vehicle).

In the meantime, they are discussing the failures or mistakes or inactions that allow commercial transport drivers exploit commuters, forcing thousands of Sierra Leoneans to hassle daily for transport, with impunity.

By Joseph Lamin Kamara

I mean all 49 of them, from Orogoo Bridge/Allen Town, running by the coast of Freetown and parts of Mount Aureol to Portor Levuma at Goderich, in the Freetown municipality.

They should be convening regular committee meetings in which we interact, dialogue, telling them the problems our communities have. They should take those concerns to the Freetown City Council (FCC) which should provide us the necessary social services.

By Allieu Sahid Tunkara

Adjacent to the Bank of Sierra Leone (BSL) complex, looking tired and famished under the burning afternoon sun, Immah Sankoh sits in a wheel chair, amid a row of physically challenged colleagues.

The woman makes a living by begging. She is given a helping hand by her nephew, Santigie Kargbo, who pushes her wheel chair to various locations within the city where she asks for alms. She says she makes between Le 10, 000 and Le 15, 000 a day.

By Joseph Lamin Kamara

The rainy season is upon Sierra Leone again. It is the period many roads become unmotorable and the period many communities are deprived of basic cooking utensils. It is the period of flooding and a moment for armed robbers. Even worse, Ebola is still here, and cholera normally breaks out in this season.

The French charity, Medecins Sans Frontiers says it will be long before Sierra Leone is declared Ebola-free. The head of MSF Spain, Marcus Bachmann would not put a precise time to when he thinks the country will achieve that feat saying “It is going to be a very painful work I fear. It’s gonna test, it’s going to challenge the patience of all of us”.