News

By Bampia James Bundu

The first beauty pageant for disabled people in Sierra Leone is set to take place in Freetown in April.

Pageant organiser Mayeni Sesay, who is the founder and CEO of Malisha Da Queen Charity Foundation told a news conference in Freetown: "the pageant will demonstrate to the world that disability is not inability, and raise funds for the disabled to enable them carry out certain projects in future".

By Crispina Cummings

Parliament on Tuesday ratified the West Africa Power Pool (WAPP) project which deputy Finance Minister Momodu Kargbo said would be financed by the ECOWAS Commission with a US $ 21 million grant. Kargbo said the National Power Authority would be the sole beneficiary of the project that will include the import of petroleum products.

By Aminata Phidelia Allie

After almost a year in prison while the trial progresses, accused workers of the National Revenue Authority, the Sierra Leone National Shipping Company and Ecobank are set for either an acquittal or conviction in April.

The Freetown High Court’s Justice MA Paul yesterday announced 3 April as the date set for the judgment after what was legally referred to as “adoption of briefs” by the defense team and the judge.

By Crispina Cummings

The public accounts committee in parliament yesterday engaged the ministry of health and sanitation in relation to queries made against them in damning the 2012 audit report.

Officials of the ministry were summoned by parliament to answer to questions of several withdrawals made without supporting documents.

United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon arrives in Sierra Leone next week. According to a UN source in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, he arrives around the 4 March to close down what is left of the UN mission in the country.

A report out today by Save The Children says the rate of child deaths remains high with around 40million women across the world "giving birth without assistance from a skilled healthcare attendant" with figures still high in Sierra Leone.

The report says this leads to the loss of the lives of "millions of infants [whose] lives are lost due to complications that are easily preventable".

It puts Pakistan as having the highest infant mortality rate, with over 40 in every 1,000 babies delivered stillborn or dying within a day of their birth.

Aminata Phidelia Allie and Jenneh Braima

Management and staff of sports betting company, Mercury International, have expressed disappointment in Airtel, one of Sierra Leone’s telecommunications operators, whose GPRS system has been down for 3 days and affecting the betting business.

The company said it had its head office on Siaka Stevens Street crowded yesterday, Monday, February 24, with customers who hoped to be paid their monies after winning their bets.