It could be recalled that whilst poor innocent Sierra Leoneans were dying in the hundreds every day during the Ebola outbreak, Government officials entrusted with funds for managing the emergency health crisis were playing fast and loose with the funds that were vital for containing the spread of the deadly virus.
What was amazing but deplorable to a majority of Sierra Leoneans was when the Parliamentary Accounts Committee took a lackadaisical attitude towards the adverse report on the gross mismanagement and misuse of the funds that was presented to it.
Now with the matter of misuse of funds during the reign of the former Government a subject of investigations by three judge led Commissions, the former Procurement Officer in the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Ibrahim Brima Swaray, the former Permanent Secretary, Sadiq Kapuwa, the Ministers at the time, Miatta Kargbo and Dr.Abu Bakarr Fofanah as well as some other Ministry officials have become the subjects of intense grueling by the Commission.
Alongside the above named to answer to, among other investigations, how ambulances were bought and Le14 billion unaccounted for are Dr. Abu Bakarr Fofanah, Madina Rahman, Dr. Bash Taqi, Alfred Palo Conteh and Kawusu Kebbie from the Ministry of Finance. Also expected to be questioned is the Ministry’s former Permanent Secretary, Sadiq Kapuwa.
Grilling of the former Procurement Officer for the Ministry of Health started on Monday and continued yesterday Tuesday relating mainly to the fraudulent overpriced purchase of ambulances to help fight the Ebola outbreak.
Evidence presented by the Office of the Attorney General is from a real time audit that was conducted between November 2014 and April 2015.
What emerged clearly from the questioning by the judge was that all the named health Ministry officials responsible for handling of funds were if not criminally culpable, grossly negligent in their monitoring roles; with the former Procurement Officer denying that he knew little or nothing about how the Ministry did procurement and issued contracts for fighting the Ebola outbreak.
In another related development at the Commissions, as the inquiry unfolded, evidence was also presented to the Commission about the fraudulent manner in which fertilizers were purchased by the Ministry of Agriculture and poorly distributed, to the disadvantage of farmers and achievement of the Government’s much vaunted quest for food security.
The State alleges that about $16 million allocated for fertilizer was mismanaged.
Meanwhile, the ACC Archivist has tendered the asset declaration forms of 338 officials that served in the former Government from 2009 to 2018 as Ministers, Deputies and Heads of MDAs.
What is gradually emerging from the evidences being presented before the Commissions is that the former APC Government is being haunted by its Parliament and Executive’s failure to follow up stringently on the adverse findings made every year by the Auditor General during their eleven years in power and failing to take the appropriate institutional and legal remedial and punitive actions that were needed to curb wastage and mismanagement of public funds and to importantly deter the greedy, selfish and unpatriotic public officials that were entrusted with those funds from continuing to mismanage and waste them willfully with impunity.
The inquiries continue and The Calabash will keep the public informed with the juiciest information from the three Commissions.

For quite a considerable period of time in this country public vehicles have been misused by those to whom they were assigned to, to such an extent that the amount of monies that are expended on these vehicles alone are so colossal which otherwise could help improve the standards of living of the vast majority of the citizenry.
In a latest disclosure the SLPP Government headed by President Julius Maada Bio has come out with a policy to address the huge spending of public funds on public vehicles. The policy, which officials say is under final review, is also billed to save millions in spending on fuel and spare parts, the Minister of Transport and Aviation, Kabineh Kallon revealed.
Mr. Kallon presided over the launching of the draft document on recently in Freetown, where he said the new policy seeks to institute discipline in the overall management of Government vehicles right across the chain, from procurement, maintenance, and allocation for disposal.
The Transport Minister intimated that in 2017 the Government spent nearly Le11billion (US$1.3million) on vehicle maintenance alone, and between Le25billion and Le30billion (overUS$3million) on fuel and lubricants alone.
“That is worrying and we cannot continue with the status quo,” he said.
The drafting of a new vehicle fleet policy came on the backdrop of debate around the lack of a proper mechanism to monitor government vehicles, which was blamed for the many vehicles thought to have gone missing in the aftermath of the 2018 political transition.
The New Direction Government accused former public officials of failing to account for official vehicles allocated to them.
According to an audit done by a Presidential Taskforce (Government Vehicle Recovery Committee) set up to take stock of such vehicles, over 4000 vehicles, out of a total of 8000, were unaccounted for.
The Chairman of that Committee, former MP Rado Yokie, said at the time that reports indicated that over 400 of the missing vehicles had been crossed over to neighboring Guinea, while over 200 were parked at unknown locations with their registration plates removed.
There were even reports of vehicles been discovered hidden in bushes, covered with grass. At least one former Cabinet Minister was indicted for converting an official vehicle into personal use. Former Deputy Works Minister, Kadijatu Sesay, was charged with converting a Toyota Jeep valued at $75,000.
Officials say the new policy provides to prevent misuse through the provision of data on government vehicles.

What seemed to be a long time coming is now just one day ahead to commence full time. How time flies! Thursday, the 14th February 2019, St Valentine’s Day, widely considered to be Lovers’ Day, is the slated day for the 40 shortlisted contestants to enter the Big Brother House but on that same day 20 will be evicted for failing to make it to the final round. Those to be evicted will be paired according to the number of votes they pulled.
The balance 20 remaining henceforth will be known as Housemates all expected to exhibit and display their God-given talents in a variety of ways as stipulated by the organizers of the competition for six weeks. How they perform will be rated by a competent panel of Judges but what will also be very unique about the whole, first of its kind TV Reality Show in Sierra Leone, is that members of the public will have the freedom to vote for their favourite Housemates via an Africell number which definitely is going to determine those to stay in the House and those that will be evicted until the competition reaches its climax leading to the ultimate winner who will bag the covetous prize of One Hundred Million Leones (Le 100,000,000). Already the stage is set and final preparations have been completed for the world to witness a tantalizing entertainment show.
Many have really acclaimed the Africa Young Voices and Africell for injecting another new episode in the country’s entertainment industry that comes in the wake of the previous successfully rated Big Sister Show. This time round it is going to be 10 male and 10 female Housemates who will battle it out.

From what this medium understood the primary focus and objective of the organizers of this TV Reality Show is to foster Youth Empowerment and provide the platform for young people to become millionaires.

To show how committed the organizers, AYV and Africell, are to thrill the public both at home and abroad the country- wide auditions were so were well organized and there was no complaint of hitches or foul-play.
By every estimation they were lively and very interesting as some of the contestants held viewers spellbound, laughing their sides out because of the funny ways they responded to questions, some out of ignorance, nervousness and others comically. Other competitors displayed brilliance by responding intelligently to the questions posed by the Judges even having a blind girl in Makeni who through the way she carried herself impressed many.

Those interesting aspects of the auditions have now whetted the appetite of fans or viewers to really see how their favourite Housemates will convincingly display their God-given talents.

Public voting via Africell Toll Number 5500, totally free, for the 20 out of the 40 shortlisted names (10 male & 10 female) to enter the House ends Wednesday 13th February 2019 at 11:59 pm.

Sierra Leoneans in-country and overseas, who will be fortunate to tune in to AYV Television are definitely going to stay glued to their TV sets to watch the six weeks series of performances by the Housemates who are expected to impressively display their natural talents in different ways to fit into the stipulated criteria that the Judges will be looking forward to in order to make their assessments.

It is important to note 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 was further disclosed that on the same 14th February 2019 – St. Valentine’s Day the first eviction will be done and this will be the 20 unlucky aspirants out of the 40 shortlisted contestants that the public had voted for, who were unable to poll the votes to qualify. They will receive Le 1 million each and other prizes like data, phones etc. The Le20 million was set aside by the AYV, whilst the other prizes will be offered by Africell.
On Saturday 9th February 2019 a float parade was organized in which the contestants actively participated and ended at the National Stadium which was part of a seven day calendar that started on Wednesday 6th February 2019 and will end today Wednesday 13th February 2019 during which there will be a Pick up Point & Checking at 5 pm to finally enter the House.
Reiterating, the 20 who failed to poll the votes polled by the other 20 aspirants will then be evicted and handed their packages. The contestants will be paired and the first pair will be evicted based on the number of votes scooped.
The stage is now well set and expectations are running high. The big question that will be on the lips of viewers is who is going to clinch the Le100, 000,000 after one month two weeks of staying in the House.

During a formal ceremony held at the Milton Margai College of Education and Technology (MMCE&T), Congo Cross campus of the polytechnic on Saturday 9th February 2019, the Acting Principal, Dr. Philip John Kanu, stated that his administration has received positive assurances from Government that the college would soon be given a University status quoting the Chief Minister, Professor David Francis, a pronouncement he asserted has reinvigorated his administration’s commitment to do more.
He further affirmed that he would use all his contacts for the college to be transformed to a University maintaining that he believes in the students to fulfill their potentials and thanked the Chief Minister for revealing that Government is actively considering upgrading the college to a University for which they would not let him down.
The Principal also urged the students to uphold the standards and quality of the college, warned them not to attend a planned matriculation party on the same day at the beach insisting that there is no free party in the world but only a ploy to initiate them into secret societies, encouraged them to take advantage of the opportunity to learn now that Government has prioritized education underscoring that the New Direction administration is determined to provide and support human development to advance Sierra Leone.
Dr. Philip John Kanu further articulated that education unlocks the potentials of citizens, that no nation can develop without education, that with education, Sierra Leone would become a great nation again, that the college is an excellent place to acquire knowledge, pledged to do more, underscored that Government is on the trajectory of change to transform the country and acclaimed Government for his appointment.
Dr. Philip John Kanu highlighted his three priorities for the college that includes transforming the college to a University, infrastructural development underscoring that there would be no more fake grades for which he encouraged the students to study hard and that his administration is working audaciously to achieve his priorities.
Earlier in his welcome statement, the Dean of the Congo Cross campus, Engineer David M. Geggai acclaimed President Julius Maada Bio for declaring war on corruption, indiscipline and poverty that would see Sierra Leone great again asserting that Dr. Philip John Kanu is emulating the sterling example of the President to make the college great again and appealed to parents to ensure that their children are punctual in college.
Engineer David M. Geggai also commended the Chief Minister, Professor David Francis for recently revealing that Government is actively considering the transformation of the college to a University.
The Vice Principal and Director of Studies, Dr. M.A. Jalloh welcomed all the new students enlightening that the ceremony is to formally accept them into the college after taking the oath when they would be recognized as bonifide students disclosing that this year’s matriculation is exceptional due to the large number of applicants stressing that the students are the best and lucky few as a lot of applicants were unsuccessful.
Dr. M.A. Jalloh continued that matriculation ceremonies are important worldwide, that the students have fulfilled all the requirements of the college but warned them to maintain law and order, respect their colleagues and authorities, protect the college property, keep the hostels clean, avoid examination malpractices, cultism other nefarious activities and social vices concluding that the students did not make a mistake in choosing the college as they would make history and have a pleasant and memorable stay.
The Dean of the Faculty of Education, Ms. Elizabeth Taylor-Morgan administered the oath to the students while Mrs. Alima Jumu welcomed the students to the college and world of academia, reminded them to make good use of the opportunity, be studious, avoid cultism and comport themselves in and out of the college that would make the institution proud.
Highlights of the ceremony were the procession of matriculants, Deans of Faculties, Heads of Departments and Senior Administration Staff, the Acting Principal, the Vice, other dignitaries and special guests from the Methodist Girls High School to the college led by the Warden of Students and the College Marshall respectively, the oath taking and sample signing of the College Matriculation Register.
The vote of thanks was rendered by Nancy Sesay, pursuing Bachelor in Education, Public Health.

The Rokel Commercial Bank has held its 46th Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the Becceles Davies Hall on Gloucester Street in Freetown. The AGM provided an opportunity for both minority and majority shareholders of the bank to ratify new board members, consider and adopt minutes of the previous AGM and discuss the Audited Financial Statements of the bank for the years 2016 and 2017.
Throughout the deliberations, it was evident that the shareholders who were quite pleased with news that the bank is now profitable were also desirous to eat the fruits of their investments through payment of dividend and bonusses. Therefore, when some assurances of an imminent dividend payment came from no less a person than the Managing Director, Dr Walton Gilpin, nerves were calmed, and the business of the day continued with the adoption of the 2016 and 2107 financial statements. Gilpin also implored the shareholders to be patient and collaborate with bank to ensure more profitability and growth. “We are hungry for profit, we are hungry to start paying dividend…. We want to develop a bank that will go along with innovation, creativity…. we need collaboration to rise up” he averred.
Concerns raised about non-compliance to the Bank of Sierra Leone’s prudential guidelines on single and aggregate obligor lending thresholds were effectively handled by the Managing Director and the KPMG representative who both posited that such a situation no longer obtains and that the auditor’s report which referred to the anomaly would always follow international standards in reporting the financials of their clients. He assured all that the Bank will remain compliant to the country’s banking laws and is on a positive growth trajectory as evidenced by an upward trend in its profit margins in recent times.
Earlier, the Financial Secretary Sahr Jusu who is also a member of the RCBank’s Board reiterated government’s commitment to working with the bank in realizing the aspirations of the shareholders as well as the general public.
Representing the Chairman of the National Commission for Privatisation, Umaru Napoleon Koroma, the Executive Secretary, Mohamed Alie Sesay said proper management structures have been put in place to reposition the bank and make it a forward-looking institution.
Representing the minority shareholders, revered banker and business mogul, Dr Sanpha Koroma commended government over the appointment of Walton Gilpin whom he said has done extremely well to turn around the fortunes of the bank. He said he had held several negotiations with relevant stakeholders that has ensured the inclusion of three representatives into the Bank’s Board.
Rokel Commercial Bank is a state owned bank with 65% shares by the government and 35% shares owned by private citizens.

H. E Fatima Maada Bio, First Lady of our Republic considers sexual violence a culture that every human being should abhor. Man is born innately good but society corrupts and influences him.
Our First lady vividly believes that this act of violence can be controlled or stopped depending on how the society perceives it, and how willing we are as a people to say NO to this 21st Century evil. That is the exact reason why H.E Fatima Maada Bio’s approach is to embark on a sensitization of the public.
And for the very first time in our history, we had our First Lady engaged Wives of Paramount Chiefs on issues of national interest. She strongly believes that with them by her side, together they would make history by winning the fight against rape in our country.

Where do we stand as a nation if we see girls who are supposed to be leaders of tomorrow become mothers? What do we seek to become if our children become prey to men who couldn’t zip up their pants?
How can we interpret the failure of a school going kid becoming a dropout due to the effects of rape? How many of us can bear the sight of seeing our girl child carrying unwanted pregnancy?
Today, we witness some of the saddest moments in our nation’s history, worse than some of the toughest moments during the eleven (11) years civil war.

The girls we see today being raped are not victims of that civil war, they are the direct result of people who in most cases should be protecting them. The level of rape we witness today was never the case during the course of the war. Lives were lost, properties destroyed, but the rape of under-aged girls was never at the level we are witnessing it today.
We see 12-13 years girls get unwanted pregnancies due to rape and in some cases forceful marriages, and subsequently become mothers. Is this the future we seek for our own children at home? Do we want to become grandparents of rapists? I’m sure the answers to these questions are NO. A big NO.

It is therefore incumbent on all of us as Sierra Leoneans to support our First Lady, and seek the strictest form of punishment for rapists, so as to deter those who might want to commit same in the future.

Our President has emphasized on investing in human capital. What sort of capital could we invest in if the girls that are supposed to be competing with boys are dropouts from schools? If the girls have their very own children to fend and care for at home? If the girls face stigmatization from the people who witnessed them being raped at first hand by calling them names in societies?

If the crimes committed on these girls were never reported? If tradition (as is the case in some areas) give the hands of our girl children in marriages to men old enough to become their grandparents?

Rape victims suffer from both physical and psychological violence that stain the heart and brain forever. This can be very harmful to victims and their families in society and in some cases have resulted to victims taking their own lives.
This MUST NOT and SHOULD NEVER be the case in a civilized nation. Sex or marriage in whatever form should be consensual, and children below the age of 18 should not be a party to both.

Rape in its entirety is evil. It is a forced and an unwanted sexual intercourse involving the genitals or any other part of the body. Rape is also a sexual assault. It is an act of violence; it is not a form of consensual sex, love, or intimacy. All these summed up, one can easily say Rape is only committed by indecent beings.
Being a rapist does not always mean that a person is mentally ill, we have mentally stable people engaging in rape today. We have all witnessed the level at which rape crimes are reported in our local media. This however does not in any way conform to normal human practice. As the popular saying goes, “Real men don’t rape”.

I stand to choose the path of the millions of our real men in our society today who stand against rape. Let us all be seen as whistle-blowers for rape victims and not silencers or contributors to this act. Committing rape is a criminal act. Rape and sexual assault may be committed against females or males; children or elders; wives, dates or intimate partners.

Many rapes are never reported to the police for certain reasons, resulting from treats on the lives of victims, to ignorance, to tradition. Rape might be committed by a stranger, but often it is committed by someone known to the victim, and sometimes relatives to the victims.
Some people get their victims drugged, drunk, or otherwise unable to respond before committing rape on them. This is wrong and we must put an end to it.

Taking into consideration circumstances surrounding rape cases and the victims’ willingness to report the cases may strongly undermine the law and institutions put to enforce and ensure that perpetrators are brought to book. In light of this, Our Frist lady extends her sincere thanks and appreciation to her husband President Julius Maada Bio for declaring National Emergency on Rape in Sierra Leone.
This could not only create fear in the minds of people who want to commit rape but has raised the flag on the need to stop this heinous and despicable act.

His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio has signed Performance Contract Undertakings with Cabinet Ministers that will be facilitated by the Office of the Chief Minister, during a brief ceremony held at State House.

In his opening statement Chief Minister, Professor David John Francis, said the event created a moment to hold Ministers and their Deputies accountable to the people of Sierra Leone and for the confidence reposed in them by the President by graciously appointing them to their respective roles.

He said the performance management would ensure and strengthen effective public service delivery that would positively impact the lives of the people, saying that as public leaders they had been entrusted with the responsibility to deliver services. He stated that signing the contract would build a culture of delivery and service delivery responsiveness.

“This contract will improve Government’s effectiveness in service delivery, develop a culture of accountability and trust in the public sector, transform the negative image of public servants and political leaders through performance and delivery, create value for money and a clear understanding of incentives and sanctions for service delivery,” he said.

In his brief response, President Bio said the event was a milestone in the journey to make Sierra Leone a better place for everyone. He said during his campaign, he had pledged to effectively deliver services to the people of the country, which he was doing through his ministers.

He added: “I want us to deliver tangible results that will have impact on the lives of Sierra Leoneans. Most Sierra Leoneans had lost trust in government but as a new government we are changing that narrative now and I need you all to show leadership in your respective ministries. Together, we can deliver on our mandate to the people of this country.”

Out of the two funding sources of Plan International is sponsorship. It creates communication relationship between a sponsor and the sponsorship child (SC). Where the financial resources collected are used to implement projects in sponsorship communities. In that perspective the Sponsorship child is considered an ambassador in his/her community.

In seven days, Plan International Sierra Leone hosted two Sponsors from Holland and Germany in two different visits, in Port Loko and Moyamba Districts.

In Port Loko District, community members at Rogbai and Masimra Villages, came out in their numbers on Friday February 1st, to welcome Mr. KO Out; a Plan International Sponsor from Holland.

These Villages are hosting a Sponsored Child under Mr. Out Sponsorship.

Community members expressed thanks and appreciation for the support given to them by both Plan International Sierra Leone and Mr. Out. They highlighted the building of Schools, Community wells, toilets and the Village Saving and Loan Scheme as some of the projects which Plan International Sierra Leone has implemented in their communities.

In his response, Mr. Out thanked the communities for their support in ensuring that, children especially girls are sent to school. He encouraged them to take good care of the facilities, and support Plan International Sierra Leone in achieving its aims toward enhancing better lives for children.

In another development, Anna Haberl, another Plan International Sponsor from Germany visited Moyamba Ngieya Village in Moyamba District, on the 7th February, to see Jestina her Sponsored Child. Community members turned out in their numbers with cultural displays to welcome her.

In a brief community meeting in the presence of Chiefs, Community Elders, School Authorities, Community Members and School Children, the community thanked Anna for her support to Jestina and by extension other children in the community.

During her response, Anna Haberl said that, she is overwhelmed to visit the community as this is her first visit to Sierra Leone. She reiterated her support to Jestina and the community.

With the objective of transforming Freetown it has been scheduled that 500 street bins will be installed on key streets in the city. The street bin installation process started on 23rd January, the eve of the Transform Freetown Forum and will continue. The street bins are emptied daily and residents are encouraged to use the bins for their intended purpose. A clean city is a healthy city! Let’s all play our part!