Lawyer Ady Macauley, who happens to be one of the Defense Counsels in the ongoing Commissions of Inquiry, has on the commencement of hearings taken a jurisdictional objection to the Commission on the basis that the rules of practice as provided for in Section 150 of the 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone had not been followed. Interestingly though, Justice Biobele Georgewill with alacrity correct him on the procedure he was supposed to use before the Commission.
Representing the former Chief Executive Officer of the National Ebola Response Centre, Palo Conteh and Madina S. Rahman, erstwhile Deputy Minister of Health,Ady Macauley informed Commissioner Justice Biobele Georgewill from Nigeria that his clients would not subject themselves to the jurisdiction of the Commission.
He submitted that one of the persons of interest, Alfred Palo Conteh was a party to an action filed in the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone in which one of the issues was to determine whether or not the Commissions of Inquiry would continue with the proceedings without complying with Section 150 of the Constitution of Sierra Leone.
Lawyer Macauley further invoked Section 124 (2) of the 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone which says “Where any question relating to any matter or question as is referred to in subsection 1 arises in proceedings in any court, other than the Supreme Court, that court shall stay the proceeding and refer the question of law involved to the Supreme Court for determination; and the court in which the question arose shall dispose of the case in accordance with the decision of the Supreme Court.
He submitted that his clients were very much respectful to the inquiry and ready to subject themselves to its jurisdiction, but could not because the Instruments that established the COI did not comply with Section 150 of the 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone.
When quizzed as to which rules or procedures he was relying on in taking a jurisdictional objection, he responded that there were no rules as the Rules of Court Committee, as provided for in Section 150 of the Constitution was not followed.
But Justice Biobele Georgewill noted that since lawyer Macaulay did not put forward any rules during his submission, until they go to the Supreme Court and set it aside, they must be bound to the rules set aside by the Commission until the Supreme Court says otherwise.
Whilst replying to the question as to why he did not file papers before taking the objection, lawyer Macauley responded that his clients were only informed of their appearance before the COI on Saturday night, through radio and social media, which, he said prevented him not to file the necessary papers.
At that juncture, the Commissioner urged O.V Robin Mason, who represented the state, to make sure all persons of interest are given fair trial by serving on them the necessary papers that will enable them prepare their case.
Responding to Macaulay’s submission, lawyer Mason admitted that he did not served any papers relating to the issues that were raised by lawyer Macaulay.
He argued that the rule of natural justice demands that a tribunal cannot determine issues that are relative to itself and that the authority and jurisdiction of the Commission has been established and confirmed by parliament.
Judge Biobele in the end advised both parties to ‘keep their gun powder dry’ as a time would come when those needs would arise.
But Lawyer Macaulay pleaded to hand in his case next Thursday to the Commission, which Judge Biobele accepted.
The judge also admonished both the prosecution and the defense lawyers to make a written submission in the interest of progress.
However, on the 14th February 2019 Commissioner Biobele gave a ruling on the matter stating that the Commission of Inquiry is legal and all persons of interest invited to testify should appear before the Commission.

Mr. Timothy Kabba, the Director of the Petroleum Regulatory Agency, Mr. Timothy Kabba on Wednesday 13th February 2019 informed staff and students of the Milton Margai College of Education and Technology (MMCET) at the Great Hall of the Goderich campus that oil and gas would soon be discovered in Sierra Leone and that Government would attract the best companies to start the mining of oil and gas in the country observing that diamonds have not benefited the country.
He made the disclosure at the Student’s Forum that was attended by hundreds of students, lecturers and staff during which he articulated that the college has been part of the history of education in Sierra Leone affirming that Government prioritizes education, the reason for the introduction of the free quality education by the Government of President Julius Maada Bio.
He also underscored that education is a basic right that makes people competitive, that today most educated people cannot articulate issues or solve complex scientific theories and contrasted between formal English and traditional education, described Sir Milton Margai after whom the college was named as the father of independence and one of the great sons of the country.
According to Mr. Timothy Kabba, it is only education that can emancipate people, that the products of Milton Margai can compete anywhere in the world reiterated that government is sincerely determined to improve the educational system in the country and recalled the civil war, Ebola outbreak and mudslide that disrupted the educational system underlining that President Julius Maada Bio has established a strong platform to implement the free quality education that would be monitored and reviewed for effective implementation.
The Director of the Petroleum Regulatory Agency went on to reveal that through education, Government would strengthen the country’s human resource capital and underscored the need for girls to stay in school disclosing that Government has increased budgetary allocation to education from 12%-21%, a clear manifestation of Government’s commitment to the sector in addition to the support from donors like UNICEF and the World Bank among others.
He further urged all to rise up to the challenge of acquiring quality education adding that students pursuing science subjects and engineering are entitled to automatic scholarship, that education must be effective and is the upward vehicle that impacts society citing South Korea that focused its resources on human capital development resulting to 98% literacy rate and is one of the biggest economies.
He recalled that the Petroleum Regulatory Agency sponsored the introduction of a Bachelor in Education degree in Petroleum Engineering and started the construction of the Science Library at the Goderich campus that was later abandoned by the erstwhile Government intimating that funds were provided for the construction of the building, provision of equipment, chemicals, furniture and other items that was never done causing the building to become derelict and stressed that this is not politics but defending the future of the young generation.
Mr. Timothy Kabba also guaranteed that the Agency would solicit funding from donors for the neglected Science Laboratory to be completed and furnished with equipment and chemicals enlightening that most the polytechnics in the country would be upgraded to universities to accommodate the large number of new intakes and that the facilities at Milton Margai would be extended.
He went on to state that Milton Margai College is one of the best in the country that has been transformed in recent times since the appointment of Dr. Philip Kanu as Acting Principal which he stressed is not a mistake; that Dr. Philip Kanu is one of the finest leaders and acknowledged that there must be cordiality between students, lectures and administrative staff for effective learning.
Mr. Timothy Kabba also described Dr. Philip Kanu as a replica of President Julius Maada Bio due to his sincere determination to transform the college into a university as well as improve on its infrastructure and academic performance highlighting that there is light at the end of the tunnel as government is committed to support education and gave an update of the oil and gas sector in the country.
In his brief statement, Dr. Philip Kanu said he welcomes frank discussions from students about developments in the college since his appointment, that his administration is transparent and accountable underlining that with resilience one can overcome challenges.
The question and answer session climaxed the well-attended event.

His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio has presented the 20th Report of the Committee of Ten Heads of State and Government (C-10) at the Plenary of the 32nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU). He highlighted series of actions being taken by the Committee since the AU meeting in Nouakchott last year.

During the presentation, the President also stated that the content of the report represents an extensive outreach by the committee members to Interest Groups and individual Member States to support Africa’s demands for the reform of the Security Council.

As the Chair of C-10, President Bio also used the opportunity to inform his colleagues about the Ministerial Meeting of Foreign Ministers of C-10 countries organised in Freetown in December last year.

He stated that: “In this regard, I am pleased to report that the Foreign Ministers of the Committee met in Freetown Sierra Leone, from 14 to 15 December last year to develop (a) a roadmap for advancing the Common African Position, (b) an Aide Memoire for engagement with the Permanent Members of the United Nations Security Council – P-5, and, (c) a strategy to engage with other Interest Groups and regional groupings.”

President Bio also warned that: “The recognition and legitimacy of the African demand to take its rightful place in global governance is achievable only if we continue to work together in articulating our aspirations and goals as a continent. We must continue to resist the temptation and efforts by other Member States and Interest Groups to divide and distract Africa from its Common Position. African countries must collectively continue to defend, promote, and advocate the Common African Position.”

In their various responses, the President of Kenya, H.E Uhruhu Kenyatta, President of South Africa, H.E Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed Ali, President of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, President of Uganda, H.E Yoweri Museveni and the Chairman of African Union and President of Egypt, H.E Abdel Fattah El Sisi praised President Julius Maada Bio for his excellent leadership of the committee of Ten Heads of State and Government. The various Heads of State and Government committed themselves to the Common African Position and assured of their support to President Julius Maada Bio to deliver on the mandate of the C-10.

Earlier, President Bio also held a separate meeting with members of the C-10 wherein he advised committee members to focus on ensuring that Africa is properly represented at the United Nations and not to be distracted by the question of which particular country would represent Africa in the Security Council and for the non-permanent seats. The Coordinator of C-10 was responding to concerns from members of the Committee on what should be the mode of the distribution of seats among the African countries once the request of the C-10 had been granted through the United Nations Reform process.

In its tireless efforts to fight corruption in every nook and cranny within the country, the Anti -Corruption Commission (ACC) has once more secured conviction against four individuals in Kenema, Eastern Sierra Leone.
It was revealed that the High Court of Sierra Leone, Holden in Kenema, presided over by the Honorable Justice Ivan Sesay, on Tuesday 12th February, 2019, convicted four former public officers for various corruption offences.
The four persons were Abubakarr Sidique Turay, former Accountant, Kenema City Council; Edward Kargbo, former Expenditure Clerk, Kenema City Council; Moses Koroma (alias ‘MO Jah’), former Transport Officer, Kenema City Council; and Mathew Amara Sesay, former Social Worker, Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, Kenema Office.
All these public officials were convicted on Twenty-One (21) Counts of Abuse of Office, and Misappropriation of Public Funds, contrary to Sections 36 and 42 respectively, of the Anti-Corruption Act, 2008.

Between 22nd of July, 2011, and February, 2012, the four convicted persons misappropriated public funds amounting to Twenty-Seven Million, Five Hundred and Nineteen Thousand Leones (Le 27,519.000/00); being monies meant for the operations of the Kenema City Council.

Justice Sesay sentenced all four persons to three years imprisonment to run concurrently; or pay a fine of Thirty Million Leones (Le 30,000.000/00) on each of the twenty one (21) counts. He further ordered that all four convicted persons are to make full payments of the fines as a condition for their release from detention.

Meanwhile, the learned Judge acquitted Lamin Lumeh Mansaray, Regional Librarian Sierra Leone Library Board,Kenema, who was also standing trial in the same matter.

The ACC was represented by Nigel B. Davies and Adrian B.C. Samuels.

It was further revealed that the Commission wishes to reassure the public of its commitment to ensuring that public funds are protected, and, where necessary, recovered. The Commission said for further enquiries, please contact Margaret Murray, the Public Relations Officer on +232-25-428-081.

An adoption of a resolution was done by the Parliament of Sierra Leone on Thursday 14th February 2019 after a debate on women, peace, and security that was laid on the Table of the House on Thursday 7th February, this year.
Presenting the Resolution prior to adoption by the House, the President of the Parliamentary Female Caucus, Hon. Veronica K. Sesay recognized UNDP’s global project on “The Role of Parliaments as Partners in Women, Peace, and Security”, with minimal funding from the Government of Norway. As such, she continued that UNDP’s commitment is to work with four legislatures, including the Sierra Leone Parliament which is the only one chosen from Africa, to progress their national identified priorities that are geared towards supporting women, peace, and security in their home countries. The four countries identified for this pilot project are Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Sierra Leone and Sri Lanka.

Hon. Veronica K. Sesay also said that the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda was formally initiated and adopted by a UN Security Council Resolution 1325 and was endorsed on the 31st of October, 2000. Since then, Resolution 1325 had been affirmed through subsequent ones, aimed at calling attention to the unique needs of women in conflict-affected situations, such as a variety of interventions to protect women and girls affected by conflict and to ensure their inclusion in peace building processes that affect them, promotion of women’s participation in decision-making, peace processes, political, judicial, elections, post-conflict peace building and efforts to prevent violence and extremism.

Highlighting the four main pillars under Resolution 1325, Hon. Veronica K. Sesay said they include participation of women at all levels of decision-making, protection of women and girls from sexual and gender-based violence, prevention of violence against women, and relief and recovery measures to address international crises through a gender lens.

In adopting the Resolution, MPs have committed to do some of the following by using parliamentary processes and advocacy to promote law reforms in support of gender equality and women’s peace and security, push for the amendment of Section 27 (4d & e) of the 1991 Constitution which allows for discrimination against women, fast track the adoption of amendments to the Child Rights Act of 2007 to make it consistent to the Registration of Customary Marriage and Divorce Act of 2009, and to debate and enact a Bill on affirmative action for Parliament among others.

MPs who spoke to the motion acclaimed and referred to the Resolution as non-controversial and that it is geared towards protecting women, children and girls from all forms of gender based violence, cognizant of efforts that had been made by Government to combat such acts against women and girls in Sierra Leone in light of inheritance, control, and decision-making processes.

They have also called on Government to promote issues relating to women such as the speedy conclusion of cases pending determination in court, recruitment and promotion of women in employment, provision to get forensic evidence against perpetrators of rape, and huge budgetary allocation with stringent supervision on issues relating to the prevention, participation, and protection of women and girls in Sierra Leone.

On Monday, February 11, 2019 the Executive Director of the Sierra Leone Legal Aid Board, Ms. Fatmata Claire Carlton-Hanciles presented a paper on ‘Increasing Access to Justice for women in Remote Communities through Primary Legal Aid Services’ at a two day regional workshop on improving access to justice for women in West Africa, with a focus on Sierra Leone, Liberia and Senegal.
The workshop which took place in Dakar, Senegal on February 11-12, 2019 was organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and UN Women, in collaboration with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
The workshop is meant to review and discuss the findings and recommendations of the assessment of the legal aid systems of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Senegal which was carried out by UNODC and UN Women in the second quarter of 2018. It is also meant to prepare a plan identifying national priorities and concrete steps that may be needed to align laws, policies and other practical measures for reform on legal aid with international standards and norms on legal aid and gender equality.
Ms. Carlton-Hanciles’s paper on Sierra Leone touched on the Legislative and policy reforms relating to women and children’s rights which she noted have been slow. She stated that the country has very old and outdated laws dating back to the 1900s when the country was under colonial rule by the British which need to be reviewed.
She added that Sierra Leone is a patriarchal society and that its culture is skewed against women. ‘The land tenure system is very problematic in the sense that women cannot own land in some parts of the country due to customary laws which are unwritten and uncodified,’ she said, adding that ‘Women cannot become chiefs in some parts of the country or inherit property. Also, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is still widely practiced.’
Speaking on legal aid service delivery, Ms. Carlton-Hanciles said with few lawyers outside the capital Freetown, the deployment of paralegals upcountry to provide primary legal aid services through mediation, legal empowerment, referrals and provision of information to enhance access to justice has been a huge success in expanding access to justice for women who are among the most disadvantaged in accessing the justice system.
She stated that paralegals work in all the districts in the country to monitor the delivery of the justice system to ensure their modus operandi is consistent with the law and rights are respected. In addition, she stated that they provide advice and legal assistance to those using the Local Courts, Informal Courts, Correctional Centers, Police Cells, Magistrates and High Courts.
She also spoke about establishment of satellite office called Community Advisory Bureaus and the training of partners to cater for the justice needs of members of their communities. She singled out the training of 44 members of the Western Area Council of Tribal Headmen as Paralegals in March 2017 which is meant to empower tribal heads on how to operate informal courts and their powers in terms of matters they can hear and determine and refer those outside their remit, mediation skills and assistance that could be provided to their tribe’s men and women accessing the formal justice system.
Other members of the Sierra Leone Team to the workshop comprised Ms. Olive Gooding of the Ministry of Justice, Ms. Ishmail Mammy of the Sierra Leone Bar Association, Ms. Juliet Anderson of the Civil Society Movement Sierra Leone and Ms. Baindu Massaquoi of UN Women.

A notable public figure who has held various positions in the past, Kawusu Kebbay, formerly attached at DACO, Ministry of Finance and now Director of Planning, Ministry of Economic & Development Planning, has been clearly exposed over his direct involvement in the purchase of twenty ambulances on behalf of the Government of Sierra Leone in Dubai in August 2014 at a time when the deadly Ebola scourge was consuming a huge chunk of lives indiscriminately.
During that period it could be recalled that, Mr. Kawusu Kebbay was formerly reassigned to the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), Ministry of Health, together with Alpha Umaru Jalloh to manage the day-to-day operations of the Ebola response program.
The then Minister of Finance, Dr. Kaifala Marah, and Minister of Health and Sanitation, Madam Miatta Kargbo, selected Mr. Kebbay to travel to Dubai and negotiate with two companies-Uniworld Trading Services and Kingdom Security Logistics- for the subsequent purchase of ten ambulances.
This medium is privy documents to ascertain that Mr. Kebbay had indeed travelled out of Sierra Leone between the 18th and 22nd August,2014 and negotiated for 20 ambulances.
The documents contain that Mr. Kebbay was so desperate that, upon his arrival in Dubai, he single handedly negotiated for 20 ambulances instead of the 10 that was agreed upon by the Ministry before his departure to Dubai.
He stated in one of his correspondences dated 18th August,2014 to other concerned Ministry officials in Sierra Leone at the time, that his negotiations for the twenty ambulances had succeeded in securing over USD50,000 for Sierra Leone.
It also became apparent that, due to the arrangements Mr. Kebbay already made with the two suppliers, after meeting with them in Dubai as stated in his correspondence, the then Minister of Health, Miatta Kargbo, had to wire a part payment of USD 708,000 to UNIWORLD Trading Services via the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank.
Even though the contract terms had provided for twenty ambulances only sixteen were supplied to the Government of Sierra Leone.

On the 14th February 2019 the final eviction of 20 out of 40 contestants that were shortlisted took place at the Atlantic Hotel in the West End of Freetown starting at 7:00 pm. The atmosphere was charged with emotion, suspense was created by the announcer and the contestants were noticeable nervous. However, there was fanfare, full of fun with an audience drawn from people from different backgrounds depicting a truly entertainment ambience.
After the usual statements and entertainment performances, the bomb was finally dropped, with rippling effects here and there when the announcer started calling the names of the contestants who have failed to make it in the Housemates Salone 2019 TV Reality Show. Nearly all of the unfortunate losers burst into tears, bodily shaking manifesting that it was indeed a nightmarish moment in their lives. After receiving Le1 million Leones each provided by AYV and other consolation prizes offered by Africell they were paired according to the number of votes they had inter alia scored and systematically evicted from the competition some reluctantly not wanting to budge.
For those who were fortunate to emerge successful it was all cheers, smiles, wishes of good luck and thumps up, some cat walking and dancing all the way. It was rumoured that they will be later blindfolded and taken away to the Big Brother House with the intension of them not knowing the location of the House.

From henceforth these 20 Housemates, who will be in the House for six weeks, are expected to exceptionally exhibit and display their God-given talents in a number of ways, including nudity, humour, interaction, creativity, how to cope with stress etc,in order to convince members of the public here and in the Diaspora to vote for them via an Africell Number or the internet.

How they are going to be performing, which will be aired live on AYV Television Channel 34 on a daily basis, for the public to vote will definitely determine those Housemates who will stay in the House when the elimination period starts and those that will be periodically evicted until the competition reaches its climax leading to the ultimate winner who will then bag the covetous prize of One Hundred Million Leones (Le 100,000,000).
Many entertainment fans have really commended the Africa Young Voices and Africell for organizing such a TV Reality Show which has been taking place in countries like Nigeria and South Africa for a couple of years now. In this first of its kind show in this country there will be 10 male and 10 female Housemates battling it out.
According to what was stated at the Atlantic wHotel by those who made short statements the primary focus and objective of the organizers of this TV Reality Show, first of its kind in this country, it is geared towards fostering or enhancing Youth Empowerment, and provide the platform for young people to showcase what they can do naturally as well as uniquely.

To show how serious and dedicated the organizers, AYV and Africell, are to thrill the public both at home and abroad the country- wide, the previous country-wide held auditions were so well planned and executed by reputable personalities who served as Judges to such an extent that there was no single complaint of manipulation, intimidation or favouritism . Those auditions were rather lively and very interesting as some of the contestants thrilled viewers out of the funny ways the participants responded to questions posed to them by the Judges; some out of ignorance, nervousness and others comically. Other competitors displayed brilliance by responding intelligently to the questions they were asked.
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Indisputably, Sierra Leoneans in-country and overseas, are definitely going to stay glued to AYV Channel 34 to watch the six weeks series of performances by the Housemates and they will definitely be excited to vote via the Africell.

It is important to reiterate that Big Brother is highly competitive and is an elimination contest with the determinant factor having to do with the number of votes that a particular Housemate pulls. However, for each day a housemate stays in the House he or she is entitled to the sum of One Hundred Thousand Leones (Le100, 000).

It is obvious that in the finally analysis the successful winner will be expected to serve as a role model in society who could champion a project to improve an aspect of the standard of living of young people in the country and may even serve as an entertainment ambassador to represent the country in such social competitions overseas.

The Housemates Salone TV Reality Show is now in full gear , though the tempo is slowly developing ,however it will reach crescendo, as the weeks roll . It is all going to be packed with suspense, fun, tense moments, display of creativity, humour and natural instincts. Sierra Leone is really trying to catch up with modern trends and is steadily making progress though the challenges are daunting. Thanks to the African Young Voices and Africell, ICAN TV .The one million dollar question now on the lips of Sierra Leoneans is who is going to be the lucky Housemate to meritoriously clinch the mouth-watering Le100, 000,000 after one month two weeks stay in the Big Brother House.
Wishing a successful Housemate Salone!

The Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) on Wednesday 13th and Thursday 14th February 2019 held a refresher program of all stakeholders and welcomed new members to its group. Present at the meeting were the Deputy Minister of Heath and Sanitation Dr.Anthony Sandy , the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee for Health Hon. Moses Baimba Jorkie, the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance, Hon. Francis Kaisamba and other stakeholders, including CSOs.
Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, Executive Director of FOCUS 100 and Chairman of the CCM said that malaria, TB and HIV/AIDS are major killer diseases which have the tendencies to reverse the gains of Government. He stressed on the effects of malaria on the working population and how it will impact negatively on the development strides of the Government. Global fund, he went on, is designed to support Government to fight the 3 diseases, which affect all sectors of the society. “Malaria contributes in bringing down the development of the country,” he underscored.
Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Health and Sanitation, Hon Jorkie, in his statement said that the overall goal of the Global Fund in Sierra Leone is to scale up response to the eradication of the 3 diseases. He however recognized that the 3 diseases pose major global health threats that can cause negative impact on nations. He further disclosed that inadequate human resources, absence of facilities, poor laboratory infrastructure are the major challenges of the health system. “To achieve the goal set there is need for all hands to be on deck, including Parliament,” he went on. He pledged the support of parliament in the fight against the diseases and that they will provide advocacy, resource mobilization and community sensitization to support the fight.
Chair of the Finance Oversight Committee in Parliament, Hon. Francis Kaisamba, commended the Global Fund for their support and the Government for the counterpart funding of 5% to the Fund. He stressed that the worrying fact is the absorptive capacity for the utilization of such funds. He called for the timely presentation of applications to the Finance Ministry to facilitate early and prompt disbursement. The Committee, he pledged, will ensure timely oversight to ensure proper utilization and implementation of the projects.
Delivering the Keynote address, the Deputy Minister of Health and Sanitation, Dr. Sandy, apologized for the absence of the Minister, whom he said was engaged in another State function and expressed appreciation to the Global Fund for their support.
“To achieve the goal set in the fight against the 3 major killer diseases, there is the need for team work, as it is the only way to achieve the desired result,” he suggested. He hoped for specific proposals for the achievement of the goal set. He added that the Government is committed to fight these diseases as demonstrated by its financial support. He hoped for a fruitful deliberation to address all bottlenecks.
In an exclusive interview with this medium Dr. Jalloh maintained that the Global Fund is geared towards the fight against Malaria, TB and HIV/AIDS. Thus it offers funds to countries where the diseases are prevalent. For this process to come to reality, Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) should be put in place. The Global Fund does not have offices in any country across the world and through the CCM, mobilizes resources and ensure effective implementation. His organization ensures that all funds sent to fight the 3 diseases, are used judiciously and for the intended purpose.
All stakeholders then went into a workshop session in their bid to identify bottlenecks and chart a way forward to make the fight against the diseases more effective.

At a Press Conference held on Thursday 14th February 2019, at its Charlotte Street Offices in Central Freetown, the United Bank for Africa (UBA) officially launched its latest product, the POS CASHBACK system. This system will avail customers the opportunity to withdraw cash from agents across the country, other than the ATM.
Speaking on the new product, Country Treasurer, Clement Yeboah, sitting in for the Managing Director said that POS means POINT OF SALE. This product, he said is “{bringing banking to your doorstep”. This process of banking, he stressed, removes the limitations of the ATM, which is mainly the problems faced with technology often rendering the server unavailable. With this new product, the customer will be able to cash money from any of the bank’s agents across the country. UBA, he stressed, is the leader in all innovative banking systems in the country.
Explaining the process involve in withdrawal of money from this system, David Musa, Head of Digital Banking, said that customers can withdraw from their accounts from agents of the bank, adding that the said agents are in all major supermarkets and hotels in the country. To access this service, customers should have a POS card which has an agreed limit between the customers and the bank. This card can then be inserted into a POS machine (a portable machine to facilitate payment) found in any of the agents’ offices. They will then select from the menu what they want to do and enter the amount of money they want to withdraw plus their Personal Identification Number (PIN). After approval by the machine, a receipt is then supplied by the machine, which should be signed by the customer and a copy given to the agent. The customer can easily walk home with whatever amount he had requested. He will therefore have no need to be in any queue or visit any ATM machine for this transaction.
Furthermore, it was disclosed that the service will be available in every part of the country where their customers operate. There does not necessarily need to be any presence of the bank for the transaction to take place. The bank is presently extending its services to other areas in the country as it gets more agents.