News

By Hajaratu Kalokoh

Tribal heads from across the country have held a one-day engagement to discuss the revival of Sierra Leonean culture. The engagement on Friday was done to coincide with the National Multicultural Day on 1 November.

The event at the British Council Auditorium was organized by Fayandi Communication Team, in partnership with Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Affairs and the Sierra Leone Local Content Agency.

By Kemo Cham

Francis Ben Kaifala’s crusade against corruption last week received a shot in the arm with the passing of the amended version of the Anti-Corruption law.

By Mabinty M. Kamara

The Mano River Union (MRU) Technical Commission on Administration and Finance and the Audit Committee have concluded a two-day meeting at the MRU Secretariat in Freetown. The deliberation saw the committees discuss issues on the growth and development of the union.

This meeting was meant to review and approve the report of the Audit Committee, examine the union’s financial statements and draft budget and provide technical opinions for adoption by the MRU’s Ministerial Council.

By Mabinty M. Kamara

A 22-year-old man serving as a witness to an alleged rape incident has been forced into hiding amidst allegations of bribery and threats to influence him to desist from testifying in the matter.

Isaiah Turay, who says he saw the alleged rape of a 13-year-old deaf and mute girl, says he is under pressure from his church, friends and family members not to testify in court in the matter involving one Joseph Samuel Bassie who is alleged to have raped the girl.

By Prince J Musa in Kenema

The famous Nixon Memorial Methodist Hospital in Segbgwema, eastern Sierra Leone has remained shut down for a month now amid a long-running indefinite workers’ strike, leaving hundreds of residents in the Njaluahun Chiefdom and its environs without healthcare.

The action of the aggrieved staff, who downed their tools on 3 October, has also led to the shutting down of the Nursing School which is run by the hospital. Some of the staff of the hospital double as lecturers at the school.

By Mabinty M. Kamara

The weak status of cooperative societies is a contributing factor to slow pace of development in developing countries like Sierra Leone, experts in the sector have said.

They said in Sierra Leone, at the heart of the problem is the increasing display of neglect of the sector as illustrated by the lack of a cooperative bank over the last 10 years.

By Hajaratu Kalokoh

Teenagers from across the country have held a dialogue session on sexual education and family planning. The dialogue which was held on Tuesday at the British Council auditorium seeks to address contemporary issues surrounding contraception, teenage pregnancy, girls’ education, sexual and reproductive health education and maternal mobility.

The conference was an initiative by the campaign group Health Alert, which organized it in partnership with Youth Action Movement (YAM) with funding from the Family Planning 2020.