By Foday Moriba Conteh
On Saturday 29th August, 2020 this medium was intimated that certain irate youths of the New England Ville community are still determined to translate a vow into reality and that is to avenge the death of one of their compatriots who was allegedly murdered by one Samson Coker, during a fracas.
The said incident took place Nine (9) months ago and since then these irate youths have been furiously searching for him, Samson Coker.
Samson was the erstwhile Community Secretary General of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP)as well as the Chairperson of Arie Wutehteh, a masked devil that is closely associated with the political party. On public holidays or when the political party is hosting big social gatherings, Arie Wutehteh, the masked devil, accompanied by its members singing and drumming, culturally performs traditional dances provoking laughter, fun from onlookers with some showering money on it. Such cultural performances are meant to bring the party members closely, create a bond among them and provide a platform for merry making.
It was on one of those occasions that confusion erupted leading to the perpetration of violence permeated by fighting, with violent youths using deadly weapons leaving in its wake the death of one Alusine Turay, a former resident of the New England Ville Community, said to have been stabbed by Samson Coker.
Though time has somehow elapsed since the unfortunate incidents occurred, however, what this medium has ascertained is that Samson Coker’s life is still hanging on the balance as family members and friends of the late Alusine Turay have vowed that the day they set eyes on Samson will be the day of reckoning for him stressing how they will ensure that they inflict mob justice on him until he gives up the ghost.
Our investigation led us to the discovery that even his immediate family members are intermittently receiving death threats if they fail to disclose the whereabouts of Samson.
It was also understood that on the 20th September, 2020 this same group of irate youths of the New England Ville Community stormed the residence of Samson Coker based on an Intelligence they purportedly received that he has returned to his residence which in actual fact turned out to be false.
Such is the level of anger among these young people, whom have become so overzealous, to take the law into their own hands. Out of past experience when such incidence takes place by the time the Sierra Leone Police descend on the scene, when that anger could have been translated into reality a life, lives and properties would have been destroyed.
In a country which has been plagued by an eleven years senseless and bloody civil strife, where youth unemployment is a huge challenge, with some young people used by politicians for the wrong reasons, resorting to violent actions to settle old scores , even leaving in its trail deaths, is seen the only alternative way of getting redress.
In the case of Samson there is no police record or evidences pointing to him being the young man who committed the alleged murder which is accused of and yet to be confirmed.
It could be recalled that it was indeed on a sombre night in the West African capital city of Freetown, Sierra Leone when residents of the New England Community were rudely awaken by a cacophony of human voices chanting incomprehensible slogans only to later decipher the words “we want Samson dead or alive”. A group of irate youths were holding on to machetes, knives, broken bottles, some smoking marijuana all seem to be intoxicated and wild.
Some were saying that they used to hold Samson in high esteem not until he proved otherwise. They continued, in the presence of our reporter, that whilst they were celebrating the country’s 55th Independence Anniversary at the SLPP headquarters on Wallace Johnson Street in downtown Freetown an altercation ensued.
There was a ban, according to them, that no mask devil should come out but Samson and some other members bulldozed and got Arie Wuteh out in the open.
They narrated that a fracas then took place and during that point, Alusine Turay, who was one of their strong members, brother and friend, was stabbed to death. They said they suspected that it was Samson Coker who killed him.
It was learnt that after searching for Samson for quite some time without laying hands on him they then embarked on attacking some nearby houses, indiscriminately looting properties and it was later reported that an 18 year old girl was raped during the fracas.
