News

...As Sierra Leone sacks Chief of Staff

President Ernest Bai Koroma last night sacked his Chief of Defence Staff, Dr Richard Konteh. A press release from State House gave as reason the allegation that "he was not open and transparent in the conduct of official negotiations for a mining agreement with a private sector operator, thereby violating established policy, undermining existing institutional arrangements, and exposing government to potential loss of revenue". It is not clear which mining company it is.

There appears to be no let-up in the Ebola menace in Sierra Leone. Just two weeks since the haemorrhagic fever was first confirmed in the country the death toll is rising fast.

Sierra Leone's Director of Disease Prevention and Control, Dr Amara Jambai says at least 12 people have died of the disease, doubling the number of deaths just last week.

"It is very difficult for us to ascertain community deaths at this moment, but the 12 deaths are the ones the hospital can definitely confirm to have died of Ebola", inferring that the death toll could be much higher.

A commercial motorbike (Okada) rider in Bo died yesterday after a bike chase on the Kenema highway. The chairman of the Bike Riders Association in Bo said that it all started on Monday morning when the deceased was trying to avoid arrest by a traffic warden because he was allegedly riding without a crash helmet.

Sorie Saccoh told Politico that the rider was trying to avoid arrest by taking a sharp bend along the Kenema highway when his bike skidded and fell on the ground, hit his head on a brick and apparently died on the spot.

By Mohamed T. Massaquoi

The iron ore miner, China Kingho Investments, Sierra Leone Ltd. says it expects to spend Le 1.8 billion annually to execute its Community Development Action Plan in the Kpaka and Galliness Perri chiefdoms in Pujehun district, for an initial period of five years, under its Corporate Social Responsibility portfolio.

This disclosure was made by an Environmental Impact Assessment consultant with the Environmental Protection Agency, Brima Kamara at a disclosure meeting held in the two chiefdoms where the company will operate.

By Crispina Cummings

Officials of the labour ministry and social security have told the committee on labour in parliament that the country’s national immigration department has been collecting work fees for permit on their behalf without accounting for such.

The head of Permit Bureau, Emmanuel Lansana said companies like African Minerals had and continued to pay residential and work permit to the immigration since 2012, amounting to billions of leones.

By Mohamed T. Massaquoi

The health management team in Pujehun and other stakeholders in the district last week held a cross border meeting on Ebola with their Liberian counterparts at the Bo Waterside Immigration conference hall on the Liberian side of the border.

The District Medical Officer in Pujehun, Dr. David Bome said their aim was to create public awareness on the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone and to collaborate with  Liberian Immigration officers in combating the disease.