By Amin Kef Sesay
One of the country’s outspoken legal luminaries, who have never been economical with the truth bordering on important or sensitive State matters, is indisputably, the Founder and Governing Officer of the Institute for Legal Research and Advocacy for Justice, Basita Michael.
She argues that whether it is true or not, for most people, the continuous failure of the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) to investigate countless allegations of corruption and abuse of power against members of the current regime in contrast to its enthusiasm to investigate and prosecute political opponents has unfortunately created the impression that the machinery of the ACC is being used as a shield for members of the sitting Government and as a sword against the opposition with the aim to eliminate political opponents and/or keep them in check.
She furthered that such an impression has been tightened and heightened due to the ongoing investigation of the Mayor of the Freetown City Council, Yvonne Aki-Sawyer.
“I humbly believe that perhaps the mistake that the ACC and the Government are making is to realize that the harm of such an impression on us as a nation far outweighs its benefits,” she stated her position.
Basita argues that firstly the impact of such an impression questions the very legitimacy of the ACC and the sincerity of the Government to fight corruption and secondly it poses the real risk of revenge when regime change happens.
“We can’t afford to continue to be trapped in the cycle of revenge,” she expressed a wish cautioning that we must avert the risks of that happening again to our beloved countrymen and women.
Basita Michael ended up recommending that it would therefore be ideal for the ACC and the Government to change course and take on the fight against corruption impartially and avoid appearing to use their authorities as a weapon to repress opponents.
She concluded by stating that failure to do so will be detrimental to us as a country and risk undermining the strides the Bio regime has made.
