Members of the Parliamentary Oversight Committee on Information and Communications, Chaired by the Deputy Leader of Government Business, Hon.Mathew Nyuma, in engagement with senior officials of the Ministry of information was presented with the status report of the said ministry in a bid to chart the way forward on how to combat cyber crime.
Hon. Mathew Nyuma said there were lots of problems and complaints made by citizens bordering on the telecommunication companies, which has to do with drop calls and poor network among other issues, adding that the Committee has the responsibility to listen to the cry of the people they are representing and that they want to know what step has been taken by the Ministry and NATCOM to ensure that they combat the situation.
Hon. Nyuma said if there are any challenges, the Ministry should bring it to them, so that they will help them to achieve their goal, adding that the President is very keen to know about the status of the ICT and the monies given for ICT training, stressing that if there are no responses, the committee will bring in the ACC for further investigations.
Hon. Mathew Nyuma expressed dissatisfaction on the departments and agencies under the supervision of the ministry, adding that drop calls have become very alarming and they want to know about the gateway and what are the plans to combat sim box fraud, noting that the Committee will go on an oversight tour to get first-hand information.
On his part, Hon. Ibrahim Ben Kargbo said the Committee is very much interested to know the way forward for the Fiber Optic Cable and that a lot of money has been put in by the World Bank to land that cable, adding that the ministry has to work tirelessly to ensure that SALPOST and Sierratel are maintained and deliver the utmost service to the nation in comparism with other telecom companies.
Responding to the issues raised by committee members, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry said that they are ready and willing to work to ensure that cyber-crime becomes a thing of the past, adding that it is the advancement of technology that has resulted in the drop of SALPOST, but as a responsible ministry, they are working tirelessly to ensure they revamp both institutions because it is owned by the country. He concluded that the ministry will continue to work closely with the committee to ensure that they succeed in the New Direction and on the issue of drop calls; they will engage NATCOM, as they are the regulatory body for the mobile operators.

On Friday, 5th April,2019 Members of the Parliamentary Oversight Committee on Trade and Industry headed by Hon. Veronica K. Sesay, engaged the Corporate Affairs Commission and the Corporate Department on oversight in a bid to get a first-hand information on their activities.
Giving her submission, Hon. Veronica K. Sesay said the Committee is not here to witch- hunt any official of the CAC, but to ensure that the right things are done. She maintained that as a legislative organ of Government, they want to see the status report of the Commission and also want to know how many companies have been registered under the CAC and their successes and challenges.
She also threw light on the announced visit members of the Committee paid to the two Commissions of Government after the approval of five Human Rights Commissioners in the Well of Parliament.
Hon. Sesay underscored the point that as the people’s representatives, their mandate is to ensure business should not be as usual and that with the New Direction, they want to see the country move forward.
Hon. Veronica Sesay reiterated the point that as a responsible Government, they want to see the Commission move to another level so as to benefit the lives of the citizenry, while echoing the point as an overseer of the Ministry of Trade, they have the mandate to oversee activities of all agencies under the Ministry, as that is what they are doing presently.

Exactly a year ago, President Julius Maada Bio took office after a nail-biting Presidential election which saw his SLPP party winning State House, but failed to gain control of the country’s parliament.
Twelve months on, there has been very little shift in general public opinion, especially regarding the economy, poverty and unemployment, despite big changes in the fight against corruption and the introduction of free education for all primary and secondary school children.
Whilst President Bio and his communications team at State House are quick to point at the government’s disciplined approach in managing government’s finances and budgets through the single treasury spending and tracking system, the robust and timely collection of taxes, and austerity measures introduced almost twelve months ago across government departments, one thing is clear – economic hardship is biting very hard in Sierra Leone.

There is very little money circulating in the economy. Inflation – the cost of goods and services, has risen by 18% since taking office twelve months ago. The country’s currency – the Leone has lost about 15% of its value since April 2018.
Unemployment – a key performance measure of government’s success n in managing the economy, remains stubbornly high at over 70%.
The economy is struggling to get out of recession. Investors are holding on to their cash – waiting to see what steps the government takes in restructuring the economy, improve the justice system and overall business climate.
Whilst there is general feeling that impunity and abuse of office – fuelled by so called ‘orders from above’ may not be as rampant as in the previous Koroma led government, lawlessness in Sierra Leone remains Sierra Leone’s most protracted social and economic ill.
But turning back to the economy, after twelve months without the Koroma led APC in power, how much have things improved?
If improvements are to be judged by changes in levels of unemployment, inflation trends, economic growth, exchange rates, and interest rates, then certainly there is very little to write home about, as Sierra Leoneans continue to suffer growing economic hardship.
But these problems were not created by the SLPP government, though expected to be fixed by them.
When the APC government was kicked out of office a year ago, Sierra Leone’s economy was already on serious life support. And that was the reason the APC lost power to the SLPP.
Months before general and presidential elections, the IMF and other international partners suspended their funding agreements with president Koroma, as ministers and senior government officials not only recklessly abandoned their offices to campaign to prolong their stay in office, but used scarce public funds to pay for electioneering. Corruption became rampant.
As government borrowing rose, so did money supply became scarce, with commercial banks restricting customers’ withdrawal of cash from their personal accounts. But ministers and senior public officials were withdrawing thousands of dollars on a daily basis.
Interests rates on personal and business borrowing became unaffordable, as commercial banks ran out of cash. Business expansion suffered, jobs were not created, and poverty worsened.
The government’s own bank – the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank, became piggy bank for those in power. Loans and overdrafts were granted to ministers and senior state officials without any intention of paying back.
As the economy contracted and recession bites hard, unemployment and poverty grew. The mining sector which accounted for almost 40% of the economy went into severe shock. Production at Sierra Rutile and the country’s iron ore mining plants contracted.
China’s Shandong iron ore mining company pulled out of Sierra Leone just months before elections last year. Iron ore mining is yet to make any appreciable recovery.
There is no magic wand that can be waved at the economic hardship that is biting in Sierra Leone today. Government can throw money at the problem – if it can find the money, by increasing the minimum wage, employ more people to work in the public sector, increase pensioners income, and spend more on public service delivery. But such a strategy can only make things worse.
Government cannot spend its way out of economic mess and growing poverty. The only viable solution, though far from being a quick fix – is job creation. And this is perhaps where the Bio led government is lacking innovation, expertise and clear direction.
Sierra Leone is still not exporting enough high value added goods to earn its way out of poverty.
Prioritising education is great. But an educated society is only good for the economy when a country can create or attract high quality jobs, for which people can be paid good salaries to take home to their families.

A few months ago, president Bio chaired his second ministerial and heads of public service retreat, where he not only read the Riot Act for ministers and senior civil servants to buckle up, he also announced that ministers will be subject to performance contract management reviews, under the direction of the Chief Minister – professor Francis.
What has become of the ministerial performance contract reviews?
Notwithstanding the fact that twelve months in power is not long enough to expect big changes in Sierra Leone, but the people of Sierra Leone are suffering economically, as poverty grows. They are fast becoming impatient.
Twelve months is long enough to see whether ministers in the Bio government are best suited for the positions they are currently occupying, and most importantly, whether they can be expected to make any improvement. Their probationary period is long overdue.
There must now be a cabinet reshuffle, if the president is to keep hope alive.

Of the various ills the economy can face, inflation is the worst for society as a whole, and yet the easiest for individuals to deal with successfully. The strategies for dealing with inflation are pretty straightforward. In practice, of course, it isn’t so simple.
When inflation is bad, prices go up every month (maybe every week), but wages and salaries generally only go up once a year. People are always feeling like they’re playing catch up.
Inflation works its harm on the economy in several different ways. None of them are really due to the inflation itself, which is why economists always insist on pointing out that mere inflation does little harm. The harm is done, though. It’s just one step removed.
We can think about the damage done when taxes are owed on the illusory profits on transactions that were break-even or worse. This drains money out of the economy at every transaction. The government can mitigate this harm in several different ways (cutting tax rates being the easiest, but also through any of a large variety of tax indexing or tax rebate schemes, special allowances, deductions, credits, etc.)
Another way that inflation hurts the economy is that governments are highly prone to try to attack the symptom of inflation (rising prices) rather than the cause (money becoming less valuable). The usual tactics are price controls, wage controls, and various kinds of tax policies designed to punish wage and price increases (or reward companies that “hold the line” on prices and wages). These all harm the economy, because the price changes are just symptoms. All price ceilings do is produce shortages, because the market doesn’t stop functioning just because the government creates a rule.
The third big way that inflation harms the economy is that it creates uncertainty. The “positive” effects of inflation (increasing business activity) only come when inflation is higher than expected, so inflation rates tend to keep rising until they get so high that the negative effects become unbearable, at which point inflation gets ground out of the economy through a recession. Since no one knows just when that recession is coming or how bad it will be, people tend to be more cautious. The result is slower growth, less long-term thinking, and less long-term investment.
Governments (through the central bank) cause inflation, and governments can end it anytime they want, by ensuring that the money supply doesn’t grow faster than the economy. But, of course, it’s not that easy.
First, nobody knows how big either the money supply or the economy actually is, and the tools for controlling it are blunt instruments. There are statistics that give people a clue about how big each was as of a few months ago, but that’s only a partial indication and it’s already out of date. Back in the 1970s economists liked to use the analogy of driving a car while looking in the rear-view mirror by alternately stomping on the accelerator and then on the brake.
Second, if the money supply has already outstripped the growth in the economy (which it has, for many years now), then the effects will inevitably work their way through the economy, producing however much inflation is necessary to bring things back into balance, no matter what the central bank does now.
Still, all periods of higher inflation end. Some end with the inflation rate coming back down to the rate where it doesn’t do much harm to the economy (basically, to where it’s small enough that things like changes in relative prices and changes in standards of living are more important than inflation, and the inflation component just vanishes in the noise of the economy). Others end with hyperinflation making the money worthless, at which point it is replaced with something else.
Based on the experience of the current situation, I don’t think the hyperinflation scenario is likely. Once the central bank moves to stop inflation in a serious way you need to turn around the strategies you used for surviving it and instead prepare for a recession.

His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio has visited the Network for Children in Need Interim Care Centre, a caregiving home for orphans, neglected and abandoned children at Allen Town, east of Freetown.

During the visit, Proprietor of the Home, Madam Inna Maria Kamara, said she was thankful to the President for visiting the home, saying that that was an indication of the importance he placed on people who look after children, the sick, elderly, or disabled persons. She said the home had faced many challenges, particularly in providing proper housing for the kids and, therefore, called on the government to provide the necessary support needed to run the home.

Minister of Social Welfare Gender and Children’s Affairs, Madam Baindu Dassama, said vulnerable children were the victims of abuse and neglect. She said her ministry was working to provide psychosocial support for orphanages across the country. She commended the centre for their usual acceptance of orphans the ministry had sent to the home.

In his comment, President Bio expressed appreciation to the management of the home for their support to the kids and thanked the community for their support to the orphanage. He said it was a responsibility of the government to ensure that the kids get proper care. He said his presence at the home was an indication of his recognition and acknowledgment of the good work the home was doing to provide care for the vulnerable in society.

“Every child is important to this government. We are here to show you all that we love and value you. We want to let you know that we recognise what you do and we are ready to support you. We know the challenges you face but we want you all to know that there is a brighter future ahead of you. I encourage you all to focus on your studies as with education you can achieve your full potentials,” he said.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has on 4th April, 2019, indicted STEPHEN YAYAH MANSARAY, Master and Registrar of the High Court of Sierra Leone, and of No. 11 Belair Park, Freetown; ADELE FAYA, Account Clerk of the Judiciary of Sierra Leone, and of 118 Bai Bureh Road Grassfield, Freetown; ISATU ULAIKATU KIAMP KAMARA, Revenue Officer of the National Revenue Authority (NRA), and of 5 Stone Seat Drive Allen Town, Freetown; and ABUBAKARR BANGURA, Revenue Officer-NRA, and of 67 Freetown Road Lumley, Freetown, on TWO (2) COUNTS each, of Conspiracy to Commit a Corruption Offence contrary to Section 128(1), and Misappropriation of Public Revenue, contrary to Section 36 (1) of the Anti-Corruption Act No.12 of 2008.

According to the particulars of offence, STEPHEN YAYAH MANSARAY, ADELE FAYA, ISATU ULAIKATU KIAMP KAMARA, and ABUBAKARR BANGURA, between the 12th and 20th March 2019, at Freetown, misappropriated the sum of Sixty Million Leones (Le 60,000,000.00) being revenue due the National Revenue Authority as fines paid by Mr. Emmanuel Ekundayo Constant Shears-Moses in respect of sentence in the High Court of Sierra Leone.

The four (4) indicted persons are expected to make their first appearance at the High Court of Sierra Leone Holden in Freetown on 9th April, 2019.

The Commission wishes to reassure the public of its commitment to protecting government revenue at all times.

The Director-General of Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority, Moses Tiffa Baio believes that the growth of the Tourism industry as a key economic diversification drive in Sierra Leone largely depends on the improvement of Air transport connectivity.

He made this disclosure during an exclusive interview with Newday Magazine at his office in Freetown. He noted that Tourism and Aviation are interwoven meaning they are inextricably linked in the development of a nation. In establishing their interdependence, he said that Tourism depends on air transportation for accessibility, while air transport industry depends on tourism for revenue generation.

“There is a huge potential for the growth of the two industries in Sierra Leone. Aviation is always linked with tourism as each industry relies on the other for growth. If we can open the domestic operations to complement the international routes, it can help create the desired growth and a shining future for Aviation and Tourism industries,” he said.

Mr. Baio also mentioned that boosting the Tourism sector is part of President Bio’s development agenda, as he considers it a main revenue generation drive that will provide jobs for Sierra Leoneans, promote cultural heritage of the country and reduce the economic over-reliance on the mining sector.

“The importance of Aviation to tourism development cannot be overemphasized, as aviation has been a focal point to the tourism industry. I acknowledge that there are challenges in the Aviation industry currently, but with the commitment of key players we will overcome the odds. An improvement in Aviation, especially domestic air transportation will enhance tourism movements; thus, the revival of domestic air transport will help achieve the goal of tourism in the country,” he added.

He concluded by noting that accessibility is the key variable that triggers growth in tourism, for without it, excursions are impossible. He emphasized that all hands must be on deck to create a win-win situation for both the aviation and tourism industries, adding that a boom in the Aviation industry is a possible boom in Tourism industry.

The Parliament of Sierra Leone has on Thursday 04th April 2019 debated and committed the Bill entitled “The Anti-Corruption Amendment Act 2019” to its Legislative Committee for further scrutiny.

The Bill is seeking to amend the The Anti-Corruption Act of 2008 with a view to amend Sections dealing with assets declarations, soliciting and obtaining undue advantage and other related matters.

It was piloted in Parliament by the Deputy Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abdulai Bangurah who said among other things that the objects and reasons were to increase penalties, protection of witnesses and to provide the Commissioner alternatives to addressing offences related to graft.

In his submission, Acting Chairman of the Legislative Committee, Hon. Osman Timbo of APC appreciated the move to amend The Anti-Corruption Act of 2008 to fight against corruption. He also referred to it “as a serious fight”, before calling for its committal for further deliberations aimed at ironing some of the contending issues.

Hon. Hindolo M. Gevao of SLPP also commended the Government for taking the bold step to empower the ACC in the fight against corruption, adding that the Bill is seeking to address some of the lacunae in the parent Act.

Rounding the debate, the Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Chernor R.M Bah referred to the fight against corruption as a “continuous process”, and commended the ACC Czar, Francis Ben Kaifala for acting on a document that had been left by the previous government to fight corruption. He also called on the Legislative Committee to speedily look at the Bill in its entirety and report to the House in due course for enactment into law.

Concluding the debate, the Leader of Government Business, Hon. Sidie M. Tunis commended the MPs for their valuable contributions, adding that “the essence of the Bill is to make corruption expensive and painful, and on implementation it will reduce corruption by 80-90 percent like in Rwanda”.

In another development, the Parliament of Sierra Leone has on Thursday 04th April 2019 debated and approved with some dissenting voices the Thirty-Second Report of its Committee on Appointments and the Public Service, chaired by the Leader of Government Business, Hon. Sidie M. Tunis.

The APC objected to the approval process on the grounds that the outgoing Commissioners were sacked against applicable provisions in the Human Rights Commission Act, that adequate compensation must be paid to the affected Commissioners, and the issue relating to conflict of interest.

Responding, the Leader of Government Business, Hon. Sidie M. Tunis said “that Section 61 of the 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone authorises the President to constitute offices, makes appointments and terminates such appointments at will”.

The Presiding Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Segepoh Solomon Thomas has directed the Office of the Clerk of Parliament to write the Ministry of Finance to make the necessary payment to the Commissioners whose services had been terminated by the President.

The following presidential nominees were approved by Parliament:

1. Mrs. Patricia N. Ndanema-Chairman, Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone
2. Mr. Victor I. Lansana-Vice Chairman, Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone
3. Mr. Hassan S. Yarjah-Commissioner, Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone
4. Ms. Simitie Lavaly-Commissioner, Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone and
5. Dr. Gassan Abess-Commissioner, Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone

Zainab Sheriff C.E.O Zee Multimedia Zainab Sheriff has launched, The Zee Factor, a reality fashion and modelling competition. Zee Factor promises to be a reality show of drama, fashion, creativity and innovation. Sheriff says the show is a platform to promote local fashion.

The model say she will be using her skills, talents, experiences and exposure to make the program a success. Zainab Sheriff C.E.O Zee Multimedia Zee Factor will feature ten designers and 10 male and female models. The selection of the participants was done on an open and competitive manner.

Sheriff says her selection process was very inclusive as she was able to accommodate everyone regardless of their limitations. The show features a cross dresser and an albino model. Sierra Leone doesn’t often celebrate or include albinos in fashion and beauty. model’s and their designers At the launch of the show at Atlantic well known faces graced the red carpet.

China Nikki, winner of last year’s Big Sister was out in public for the first time in a long time. china Nickywinner of 2018 big sister reality TV show There will be 3 winners of the Zee Factor, each taking home 20 million Leones. Aminata Bangura, Miss World Sierra Leone will host the show. The public will be required to vote for their favourite participant. Sheriff has had quite the year.

There was the huge public fall over between herself Anthony Junior Navo, AYV, and Africell. Some might have thought, that that would have dampered her prospects but nothing seems to hold her down. Sheriff have moved on to new projects and remains focused on being a key part of Sierra Leone entertainment.

Zainab Sheriff is the owner of Zedzee Multimedia and modelling company. She is an actress, singer, model. She is listed amongst the 50 Most Influential young Sierra Leoneans. Last year she produced the wildly successful Big Sister Sierra Leone reality TV Show.

A year after taking office as Sierra Leone’s fifth president, Julius Maada Bio believes his government is changing the country’s negative image. A retired brigadier general, Bio was briefly the leader of a military junta that handed power to a civilian elected leader in 1996. He was elected with 51.81 percent of the vote in a runoff in 2018. During a visit to the United States last month, he addressed the Harvard Kennedy School, toured the MIT Media Lab and met with business executives convened by the Corporate Council on Africa. During an all Africa interview, he outlined his rebranding strategy and described why he is prioritizing human capital development.

INTERVIEW
A year after taking office as Sierra Leone’s fifth president, Julius Maada Bio believes his government is changing the country’s negative image. A retired brigadier general, Bio was briefly the leader of a military junta that handed power to a civilian elected leader in 1996. He was elected with 51.81 percent of the vote in a runoff in 2018. During a visit to the United States last month, he addressed the Harvard Kennedy School, toured the MIT Media Lab and met with business executives convened by the Corporate Council on Africa. During an allAfrica interview, he outlined his rebranding strategy and described why he is prioritizing human capital development. Excerpts:

Peacebuilding in a post-conflict nation
Quite a lot of people still think Sierra Leone is a country ravaged by war, devastated by Ebola and a lot of other calamities. It was extremely difficult to restore peace after too many years of civil war. But we are a resilient nation, so we are doing everything to consolidate that peace and democracy. We are changing the narrative.
Sierra Leone is a place where democracy has taken hold. As a post-conflict nation, peace and national cohesion are very important. We want to stitch the country together, irrespective of region, irrespective of ethnic group.
We have decided to establish a commission designed to make sure that the different ethnic groups that live in Sierra Leone consider themselves as Sierra Leoneans. We are doing this because whenever there’s politics, bad politicians play the ethnic card, and that has been a divisive factor. We want to change that and make sure that we are one country and one people Nothing should divide us. We should stay together as a nation to be able to prosper and have a shared future.
Rebuilding the economy
We are working to create the enabling environment for a vibrant economy. We are working to make sure that there is a thriving private sector.
I pledged to provide leadership that is inclusive, I have demonstrated that with the National Development Plan that we just launched. All parties were involved in preparing the plan. Every facet of our society was involved – nearly two million people were consulted. That is the sort of society we want. We can’t afford to be divided. For us to make progress, we have to be united in purpose in order to get to the end that we have decided on.

After so many years of mining diamonds, gold and so many natural resources for which we have nothing to show, we want to concentrate on human capital development.
Human capital meaning food security, health security and education. I ardently believe that if we take care of the human being [and] invest in education, we can produce a population that is useful in the 21st century.
Prioritizing human development
We want to make Sierra Leone the champion of human capital development. When we talk about human capital, we are talking about food security, health and education – investment in all of those area. Already we’ve scaled up our investment in agriculture and health and education.
We are devoting 21% of our national budget on free education so that our kids can be competitive and educated. The system we are working on is not education as we have known it in the past. It is education that is fit for purpose in the 21st century. The world is a village. We want to make the curriculum relevant to the modern world, to produce a workforce that relates to the digital economy that we want to develop.
For healthcare, we have to create a system that can really deliver. When Ebola arrived, we were caught by surprise. We didn’t have the systems in place. We didn’t have the medical personal trained enough so we lost a lot of them, since the Ebola epidemic. We’ve been working to structure our healthcare system in such a way that should there be any occurrence of that nature, we can deal with it. Our maternal mortality rate is definitely too high. Also for the kids. We are working to reduce those numbers.
Role of women and war on gender violence
Women have been deprived of their rightful position for a very long time. They have cultural restrictions that prevent them from being equal partners. We are working to make sure that women are involved as equal partners. We should not consign them to the kitchen.
Because of the spate of sexual violence that has been going on in the country, I had to declare a state of emergency because I needed to attract enough attention to that menace, which we cannot allow to happen in our country. We need action from government. Our society really needs to know that that is not the way to go. We are escalating the activities down to the village level so that people know it is not acceptable.
The role of regional integration
Markets are very important, and in west Africa and across Africa, we are talking about opening up the borders for free movement of not only goods but also people. There’s a lot of effort going on the continental level. We have established the fact that investment and the trade can help us grow our economies. Not every economy is ready but we have to start it and everybody will rise to the occasion.
For a long time, we have depended on mineral resources. What I have set as a goal is to diversify into agriculture, fisheries, tourism so that we don’t put our eggs in one basket. That was what happened when we suffered seriously when price of commodities dropped. We’ve not been able to recover because we depended on iron ore as the main source of revenue for the country. We also have revamped revenue collection and we’ve been able to make a 30 percent increase in the past 11 months.
A welcoming ecosystem for investment
The role of the private sector is very important, and we are creating the enabling environment, an ecosystem that is inviting to make sure that genuine investors can come to Sierra Leon and have a decent return. And we give them the freedom to repatriate their profits. We are ready for business and we want you to come.