The President
H.E. Ernest Bai
Koroma
State House
State Avenue
17th October 2012
Open Letter on the destruction of the social fabric of Sierra Leone
Sir over the past
few weeks the Awareness Times Newspaper and its publisher have
launched scathing attacks on the Independent Media Commission (IMC),
the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ), and lately the
Guild of Newspaper Editors (GNE) along with denigrating remarks on
the persons of all the individuals leading these institutions
including my humble self on a very public forum.
Sir it is a
shameful thing for this country that such indecent language is
published in full view of international visitors, foreign nationals
resident here and school going children who have been encouraged by
their teachers to read newspapers to improve their knowledge of
current affairs. I can only imagine the impression (of us Sierra
Leoneans and your government) that the recent publications have made
on the numerous foreign investors, who have come to do business in
our country. Is this the impression of Sierra Leoneans we want to
portray to the world?
Sir such a display
of blatant disrespect for authority in the public eye can only serve
to send the wrong message to the youths of this country, even as
efforts are made to get them to respect law and order.
Sir as the main
custodian of the constitution, the duty for upholding and promoting
“public morality” rests squarely on your desk. This is why the
silence of you and your government while the social fabric of this
nation is being torn into shreds has become very worrying for all who
stand for decency in this our country – Sierra Leone.
Sir, I only hope
that by allowing the members of the IMC - including the Chairman who
was appointed by you - to be so disgracefully abused (by someone very
close to you), this will not encourage decent people to accept your
nominations to public office in the future.
Sir as President
we know and believe that whatever is allowed to happen in this
country is because you sanction it.
I trust that your
sense of decency and your moral duty to the children of this country
and the decent Sierra Leoneans whose sense of belonging has been so
grievously abused, will cause you to take the necessary action and
put a stop to this madness.
Sir I trust that
this humble appeal will not be treated with silence, so...
Kelvin Lewis
Kelvin Lewis
Chairman Guild of
Newspaper Editors
Editor Awoko
Newspaper
