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President Bio Graces Open Courtesies of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week

President Dr Julius Maada Bio

By Alim Jalloh

His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio on the 13 January 2020 attended the opening ceremony of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, which brought the world’s sustainability community together and set the agenda for the discussions and debate for the week.

In his opening statement, His Highness Sheikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, said that UAE would continue its vital role in uniting efforts to find solutions to the major challenges facing the world today, adding that it was time to chart a common path to building a promising and sustainable future for all.

“Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week reflects the UAE’s leading position as a strong supporter of global sustainability initiatives and has transformed into a global platform that catalyses sustainable strategies and real-world solutions to help drive human progress,” he said.

The theme for this year’s meeting is “Accelerating Sustainable Development” and the ceremony was attended by about 4,000 delegates, including world leaders, senior policy makers, business leaders, scientists to academics.

President Bio was in the midst of several world leaders including H.E Frank Bainimarama, Prime Minister of Fiji, H.E Danny Faure, President of the Seychelles, H.E Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, H.E Armen Sarkissian, President of Armenia, H.E Joko Widodo, President of Indonesia, H.E Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda and H.E Ana Brnabic, Prime Minister of Serbia.

The day’s ceremony was also held alongside the Zayed Sustainability Prize Awards event, where His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio was honoured to present one of the awards. The Zayed Sustainability Prize is a tribute to the legacy of the founding father of the UAE, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, a pioneering champion of global sustainability and humanitarianism. The Prize recognises and rewards organisations and high schools that demonstrate impactful, innovative and inspiring sustainability solutions.

Six Correctional Centres Benefit from Psychosocial Counselling

Director General of the Sierra Leone C0rrectional Services - Mr. Joseph Lamboi

By Leslie Cole-Showers

Six Correctional Facilities outside Freetown (Western Area Urban) in the opening week of 2020 started benefitting from Psychosocial- Counselling, with funds provided by the United Nations Development Programme and the International Bureau of Narcotics and Law Enforcement.

The Centres to which the practice has been spilled include: Waterloo Pre- Trial Detention and Simulation Centre, Port Loko, Makeni, Bo, Kenema, and Kono. Twelve Psychosocial Counsellors were sent, two to each of the said Centres. The six Centres have been chosen because the Officers- in- Charge of them have been overseas to see how Psychosocial Counselling is practiced.

The practice, according to the Director General of the Sierra Leone C0rrectional Services – Mr. Joseph Lamboi, is one that focuses on redeeming inmates from their offending ways, with a view to tune their minds into acceptable societal bandwidth.

“Our transformation from Prisons to Corrections has been accompanied by numerous positive changes, and Psychosocial Counselling sits on top of all of the ingredients of Corrections. Most inmates come into our Centres bad, our aim is not to discharge them as worse, but better citizens.”

He said the Mandela Rules, which is otherwise referred to as the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners makes it abundantly clear in No. 4 (1) that: The purposes of a sentence of imprisonment or similar measures deprivative of a person’s liberty are primarily to protect society against crime and to reduce recidivism. Those purposes can be achieved only if the period of imprisonment is used to ensure, so far as possible, the reintegration of such persons into society upon release so that they can lead a law-abiding and self-supporting life.

Mr. Lamboi said Psychosocial Counselling can also be referred to as Case Management, Probation, Para- Psychology, among others.

In 2018, he reprised, the SLCS selected thirty graduate officers from recognised Universities to be trained in the ways of Case Management, by a local entity (Life by Design), adding the training lasted for three months.

“Upon the completion of their training, they were sent to the Pademba Road Male Centre, Reintegration Centre, and Female Centre in Freetown to pilot what they had learnt. Since then, they have recorded some successes such as: re- uniting inmates with their family members who had abandoned them on account of the crime they committed; inmates without skills have been identified and sent into one of our rehabilitative programmes; those who lost hope and self- belief have regained them, and more importantly, Case Managers have been very useful in getting the spade work done in communities from which these offenders hail in order to ensure their re- integration is smooth.”

Mentioning why it took this long for the practice to be deployed up- country, the DG said they were waiting for additional funds from the UNDP & INL, because “the practice is financially demanding”.

Citizens from all Walks of Life Visit Parliament

By Brima Sannoh

The House of Representatives recently hosted a crop of new visitors. Sierra Leoneans from all walks of life including farmers, pupils, persons with disabilities, the aged, civil societies, and the media were given unhindered access to Parliament where they were recently able to observe and speak with Members of Parliament (MPs).

A first in history, the three-days Parliament ‘Open Day’ held on the 9th –11th December 2019 was like none that had given citizen access to the Sierra Leone House of Parliament. Citizens were exempted from the usual protocols experienced when visiting Parliament.

Widely, an all-embracing interaction between the citizenry and Members of Parliament followed speeches delivered during the first day and there was excitement as citizens shook hands and interacted with their leaders, the MPs, and all staff of Parliament. Citizens however showed more interest in asking questions about MPs duties in light of strengthening democracy in Sierra Leone.

The theme for this maiden Open Day of the Fifth Parliament of the Second Republic of Sierra Leone: ‘’Making Parliament of Sierra Leone Visible and Engaging with the Public.’’ was timely to accentuate the country’s democratic gains and has helped to demystify perceptions and bringing Parliament even closer to the people of Sierra Leone considering the critical role of Parliament in democratic and sustainable good governance.

Consistent with Goal 4 of the Strategic Plan of the Sierra Leone Parliament; making Parliament open, accessible, representative, inclusive, transparent and accountable to the citizens of Sierra Leone, the Open Day aimed to increase public awareness and understanding of its work; to enhance citizens understanding of the constitutional role of the MPs; to heighten public trust and confidence in Parliament; and to make Parliament accessible, participatory and above all responsive to the interests of the citizenry.

‘Mock Parliament, how laws are made’

One the second day of the Parliament Open Day, the Sierra Leone Parliament was summoned by key stakeholders to serve as the legislative branch of Government where the voices and interests of citizens were expressed and addressed through debate on public policy matter. This session focused on emerging issues from voices of the most affected by government policies and law- making process.

As the event unfolded, another strategic session was held in the well of parliament. Citizens were given the opportunity to act as MPs after they had been enlightened on law making processes and the parliamentary standing orders. A bill was read by the clerk of parliament for a debate. A nine-year old girl was one of the simulated MPs who acted as an opposition member in the well.

Also, a partnership engagement framework session between Parliament of Sierra Leone through the Parliamentary Research Unit and research institutions, Think-Tanks, Civil Society Organizations and Development Partners was held to establish a collaborative relationship that utilizes various platforms through which MPs will be supported with relevant research information that will inform their legislative and general decision making procedures in the House of Parliament.

The affirmations prescribed in the constitution of Sierra Leone, the Fifth Parliament of the Second Republic poised to maintain three key constitutional responsibilities which are Representation, Law Making and Oversight.

In discharging its representation function, Parliament has represented Sierra Leone remarkably well in national and international levels. For instance, the Parliament of Sierra Leone has a solid representation to the Pan-African Parliament, ACP-EU Parliament, ECOWAS Parliament, as well as to the statutory meetings of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, Inter- Parliamentary Union and other International Parliamentary Organizations.

The Constitution of Sierra Leone (Act No. 6 of 1991) vests supreme legislative power in the Parliament; it has the supremacy over the enactment of laws; it is empowered to amend existing laws, ratify conventions, agreements and protocol; promote public accountability and transparency and monitors post-legislative implementation of laws. In this respect, the Fifth Parliament has recently amended the Sexual Offences Act of 2012 and the Finance Act of 2020. Whilst in its oversight responsibilities over the executive branch, parliament has performed remarkably in its Seven Standing Committees listed in Section 93 of the constitution.

The UNDP and other Development Partners have vowed to continually give their support to the Sierra Leone Parliament to honour all democratic forces for the maintenance of inclusive and good democratic governance. Parliament should devoid of any political machinated effort and work towards strengthening our democracy. The citizenry expects a parliament that is virtually representative and inclusive.
The Open Day was supported by UNDP and UN family, European Union, DFID, WFP, Ministry of Tourism, Africell and Orange mobile companies

The three-day event was climaxed with an award ceremony where the work of UNDP, development partners, key sponsors and various departments was recognized. The Speaker and MPs toured exhibition stands of various departments and development partners. Cultural dance groups were all present and exhibited the rhythm of Sierra Leonean culture.

Combating Climate Change will End Energy Poverty

By Amin Kef Sesay

Black carbon – emitted by gas and diesel engines and released through the burning of wood, peat, charcoal, and other solid fuels – is the second most significant contributor to climate change after carbon dioxide. For most Africans who lack access to affordable sources of power, burning charcoal and wood remains their sole source of energy.

However, as these fires burn across the continent, black carbon and smoke do more than accelerate climate change; they are also a source of serious health problems and a cause of ongoing forest destruction. Fortunately, recent progress suggests that it is possible to provide alternative sources of energy to those in need and, in so doing, address human health, climate change, and deforestation all at the same time.

Africa has the highest per capita wood fuel consumption in the world. It is estimated that across Africa, more than 80 percent of people use some form of wood fuel as their primary source of domestic energy; more than 80 percent of households in urban areas use charcoal, while firewood is used primarily in rural areas. All together, wood fuel consumption in Africa is likely to in billions of cubic meters each year.

All that wood going up in smoke has a real climate impact. It is estimated that cooking using solid fuels like wood and charcoal in Sub-Saharan Africa alone accounts for some 6 percent of global black carbon emissions. In addition, up to 34 percent of wood fuel in Sub-Saharan Africa is harvested unsustainably, contributing to widespread deforestation and land degradation.

According to World Bank data in 2017, only 23.4 percent of the population in Sierra Leone had electricity, while over 90 percent rely on charcoal and firewood for cooking. In fact, access to electricity is low across West Africa, including Guinea (35.4 percent), Liberia (21.4 percent), and Cote d’Ivoire (65.6 percent). According to Kandeh Yumkella, the former Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, if current trends hold, Africans will still be using such fuels to cook in 2050.

In addition to damaging the environment by contributing to the rapid shrinking of Africa’s rainforests and woodlands, exposure to household air pollution, especially smoke from cooking fires, causes 3.8 million premature deaths each year, mostly in low- and middle-income countries, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). 98,000 Nigerian women die each year from the use of firewood, with thousands more at risk of severe health problems.

After malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, smoke is the biggest killer of women and children. It has emerged as an important risk factor in the spread and severity of chronic respiratory diseases like chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and asthma. But the solution is simple; according to Yumkella, ending household air pollution-related deaths is as straightforward as delivering clean-cooking solutions.

Nowhere is the need for alternative energy more acute than in the Mano River Union (MRU) countries of Liberia, Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire and Sierra Leone. In November this year, a high-level multi-stakeholder renewable energy and clean cooking conference was held in Freetown, Sierra Leone. The meeting provided an opportunity for an in-depth discussion on five key thematic areas – energy access, sub-regional power trade, clean cooking, utilities infrastructures and the energy-health and economic development nexus.

Several projects are already underway to improve power generation in the sub-region, including regional organizations and transnational projects to better interconnect the power grids of the four countries. The Freetown meeting provided an opportunity to better coordinate these and many other projects while sharing knowledge and improving cooperation.

The governments of the MRU demonstrated their commitment to the issues of clean power generation by sending high-level representation to Freetown. The President of Sierra Leone officially opened the meeting and delivered a keynote address. He noted that there was no need for a region with so much potential to be so energy poor. With near-perpetual sunlight, untapped biomass potential, strong winds, numerous rivers, abundant natural gas, and a vast belt of clean geothermal reserves, he said, the region’s energy needs could easily be met.

The meeting included a wide variety of stakeholders, and national leaders were joined by civil society groups as well as representatives from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), Power Africa, Global Renewable Congress, UNOPS, HIVOS, and many others.

The Freetown Declaration

Following two days of engaging discussions, the meeting concluded that the governments of MRU should work together to harmonize policies for renewable energy and off-grid solutions across the four countries; seek technical assistance from international development partners to undertake relevant technical studies regarding status of clean cooking solutions; establish an MRU association of private sector actors in renewable energy and clean cooking solutions; commit themselves to enhance cooperation amongst legislators in the fields of energy, energy regulators, and ministries of energy; undertake the development of a roadmap for regional energy market integration; coordinate to strengthen a business enabling environment to attract private investment to the energy sectors of the sub-region; explore and pursue relevant, opportunities for cross-border trade amongst MRU member states; and commit to having an annual multi-stakeholders meeting.

The Freetown meeting was a great start to coordinating efforts to end energy poverty in the MRU and help combat the threats posed by black carbon. However, the hard work of implementing the recommendations still lies ahead. Regional cooperation and coordination will be key to ending energy poverty, developing renewable energy, and confronting climate change.

Health Ministry in Le1bn Overseas & Medical Treatment Saga

By Amin Kef Sesay

The much talked about 2018 Auditor General’s report has exposed some irregularities with regards the utilization of funds in the Ministry of Health and Sanitation.

The report, which was tabled in Parliament in December 2019 revealed that payment for overseas medical treatment for ten (10) patients and overseas travelling expenses, amounting to Le1,142,782,257.00, were not supported with relevant documents.

According to report, the action of the Ministry contravened Section 73(1) of the Financial Management Regulations of 2007.

“The lapse was due to laxity on the part of the Permanent Secretary and Chief Medical Officer, and this could provide a leeway for the misappropriation of funds,” the report stated.

The auditors recommended that the Permanent Secretary and Chief Medical Officer should ensure that the aforementioned amount is accounted for, and also review the expenditure control system for overseas expenses to ensure that such lapse is not repeated.

Also, the report revealed that bank withdrawals, totalling US$53,514 were undertaken by the West African Health Organization but supporting documents were not submitted to fully substantiate the payments concern.

“There was no NRA receipt to confirm the payment of withholding taxes which amounted to US$1,650. Payments totalling US$42,885 were made without the expressed approval of the Permanent Secretary in respect of the training of Ethics Committee and Pharmacy Board members,” the report revealed.

The auditors noted that there was no evidence in the form of requests for quotations to justify that procurement of goods, works and services amounting to US$50,455 were conducted in accordance with section 45 (1) and the ‘First Schedule’ of the Public Procurement Act of 2016.

They recommended that the Coordinator for West African Health Organization should ensure the said amount are properly accounted for by the Accountant and also review the expenditure control system to eliminate the weaknesses which brought about the lapse.

The Government was also urged to ensure that adequate budgetary provision is made for the health sector in order to keep to its commitment of the Abuja Declaration in the 2019 budget and onwards.

Sierra Leone signed up to the Abuja Declaration of 2001, which states that at least 15% of government’s annual budget was to have been allocated to the health sector.

Secret Society Issues Death Threats Against Osman Kanu

Osman Kanu

By Abdulrahman Kamara 

Reports reaching this medium revealed that members of a secret society, ‘the Poro Society’ has mounted a man hunt for Osman Kanu, after it was disclosed that he narrowly escaped death at the hands of the members in their society shrine, where he was being forcefully initiated on 27th December 2019.

According to sources closed to the family, Osman Kanu was living in Freetown when news of the death of his father met him. As the only son of his father, he was expected, as tradition demands to grace the funeral, but he deliberately refused to attend for fear that he will be forced into society initiation, especially as his late father was a senior member of the secret society and had initiated many young people belonging to other members in the society, some of whom had mysteriously died in the society shrine, located in the middle of the forest.

According to sources, Pa Santigie Kanu, the late father of Osman Kanu, was the head of the Poro Society in Karafay village in the Port Loko District and passed away in 2018. It was further disclosed that on the one year anniversary of the death of his father, Osman Kanu was invited from Freetown to come and observe the one year funeral rites of his later father, since he was absent on the burial day.

Our source further disclosed that on his arrival in the village the heads of the Poro Society told Osman to take over his father position as the head of the society, which is called the ‘Soko Bana’, but he refused the offer on grounds that he is a devout Muslim and his religion forbids association with such secret societies, where the consumption of human blood is part of the initiation ceremony.

However, whilst sleeping in the night, members of the secret society abducted him and took him to the society shrine for initiation. After some days in the bush, whilst preparations were on the way for the completion of his initiation rites, Osman Kanu managed to escape from the shrine into the bush and disappeared.
Family sources say that they only knew about his disappearance when the members of the society stormed their house looking for him.

In an interview with the visibly shocked mother, Mabinty Koroma, she disclosed that Osman is her son and that the society demands that the biological son of the father, head of the society, should take over the leadership of the secret society. She furthered that as the mother, she is not in support of her son joining the Secret Society, but tradition demands that he must go through the process, as he is the only son in the family. “I am a woman and I don’t have the power to question the tradition of the society as a woman, and I don’t have any right to make decisions in the home”, she stressed.

She lamented that this incident has caused her son to disappear and his whereabouts are unknown to her and any member of the family. She expressed anxiety over the safety and health of her son.

As we go to press there are fresh moves to locate Osman by members of the secret society, who are intimating that if found, he will be made to pay with his life, as no one enters the secret shrine of the society and goes away without being initiated. They are, in all cases, hunted down and killed secretly.

Salone’s Electricity Development Partner Becomes Energy Minister

By Sam Pratt

One of Sierra Leone’s energy development partners, Mohamed Ammar, who was STEG International Services’ General Manager, has been appointed Minister of Renewable Energy in Tunisia. Mohamed Ammar started his career as electrical engineer over 25 years ago, working for STEG Tunisia and rose through the ranks to become its General Manager.

Since his appointment as General Manager, he steered the company into several African countries south of the Sahara.

Mohamed Ammar’s STEG International Services was awarded an eleven million United States Dollars (US$11m) contract in 2014, through an international competitive bidding funded by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), to do the procurement, installation, and commissioning of the reinforcement and extension of the medium and low voltage network and the supply of prepaid meters and vending stations in the Western Area of Sierra Leone.

STEG International Services, which is a subsidiary of the Tunisian State-Owned Company of Electricity and Gas (STEG), officially completed its contract in 2017 and the warranty expired in November 2018.

Throughout STEG’s contract in Sierra Leone, they were able to successfully do the installation of 88 new distribution substations, which included 23 package substations, 25 ground mounted transformers, installation of 30 new 11KVA oil ring main units and the installation of 29 new LV distribution panels.

Similarly, 15 kilometres of 11KV underground cables and 64km of 11KV overhead lines were installed. In addition, 115km of LV overhead lines were installed and STEG was able to supply 10,200 split prepaid meters’ circuit breakers and boxes, which included 10,000 single-phase and 200 three-phases, and two Hilux pick-up vehicles equipped with ladders and tool boxes.

STEG International Services currently operates in 21 African countries and the Middle East. It has ongoing projects in Rwanda, which electrification project includes the attainment of 60% distribution in phase 2, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, among others.

With the appointment of Mr. Ammar as energy minister, Sierra Leone has a partner that understands the energy development programs in the country.

STEG has contributed immensely to the rural electrification of Tunisia from 6% in 1972 to 99.9% today. The above statistics is an indication that Mohamed Ammar’s STEG International Services has the development experience that they would share with Sierra Leone. From his recent visit to Sierra Leone in 2019, Mohamed Ammar expressed his desire to continue working on the improvement of electricity distribution network in the country.

STEG International Services’ Country Representative, Alhaji Mohamed Lamin Tarawally, said that with the appointment of their General Manager as Minister of Renewable Energy in Tunisia, there is an opportunity for many areas in Sierra Leone to be electrified.

“We also have an opportunity for our electrical engineers to gain additional trainings in Tunisia. There would be a strategic collaboration between us and Tunisia, which would subsequently ensure that our country enjoys sustainable electricity supply. We are project developers ready to work to develop our country,” he stated.

 

Staff Performance Under Appraisal at Standards Bureau

By Brima Sannoh

The Directorate of the Sierra Leone Standards Bureau (SLSB) on Wednesday organized Performance Appraisal Session (PAS) for staff members of the institution.  The event has been the first formal session ever in the history of the Standards Bureau under the leadership of the Executive Director Professor Thomas Yormah who has been in office for a year.

The session is aimed at managing and improving the performance of the SLSB by enabling a higher level of Staff participation and involvement in planning, delivering and evaluation of work performance which is in line with the New Direction Government of His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio.

In his welcome address to the PAS Consultant, Mr. Abdul-Rahman Sowa, the Deputy Director of the Bureau, Mr. Amadu Jogor Bah said the SLSB was pleased to have Mr. Sowa as consultant to staff of an institution he had once served as scientific officer.

Mr. Bah described PAS as a step in the right direction for the Bureau, adding that it would develop the human resource of the institution. He reminded employees of the Bureau that an organization’s performance depends on academic qualifications and competence.

Giving an overview and purpose of the session, the Executive Director of SLSB, Professor Thomas Yormah said one of the manifestations of the challenges plaguing the SLSB which he inherited was “a lopsided corporate infrastructure with staff placements and promotions not rigorously reflecting merit, based on qualifications and performance.”

He said the lack of s systemic staff performance appraisal had meant that promotions and placements were generally out of sync with merit.

“A particularly disturbing feature of the staffing architecture is that there is no hierarchy and succession plan among

Scientific/Administrative Officers within the various departments below the managers. Thus choosing an officer to act in the absence of the substantive manager is largely according to the whims of the manager.

For good measure there is no structured reward system for hard work”, he said. The Director noted that the lack of meritocracy at the Bureau meant that an officer can be employed at the level of scientific officer and remains at the same level until retirement.

Professor Yormah said that this ugly situation had led to staff disgruntlement, low motivation and general work laissez-faire thus contributed to the present sluggishness of operations at the Bureau.

“It is clear that no matter the level of increased resources the SLSB receives from Government and donor agencies if the corporate infrastructure is not receptive to transforming that support into tangible positive impacts on our stakeholders then the effort will be futile, ” Professor Yormah warned.

The SLSB boss concluded by saying that to address the foregoing scenario, the Bureau thought it necessary to hire a consultant to ensure training of staff on performance evaluation and followed by merit based restructuring of the corporate architecture.

 

New Leader Emerges in C4C

By Alhaji Saidu Kamara

Following the official resignation of the leader of the Coalition for Change (C4C) Party, Chief Alhaji Samuel Sam Sumana, the party has appointed Hon. David Bai Conteh, former APC MP for Yele in the Tonkolili district, Northern Region of Sierra Leone as their leader.
Chief Sam Sumana said in his letter of resignation dated 4th January, 2020 that he was leaving the C4C Party to enable him continue his political journey through his former party, the APC. He was disgracefully expelled from the APC party and subsequently sacked as Vice President of Sierra Leone in 2014.

He challenged his wrongful dismissal by former President Koroma in March 2015 at the ECOWAS Court in Abuja, Nigeria.
Chief Sam Sumana thanked the people of Sierra Leone, particularly the people of Kono district for their loyalty and support and every individual at home and abroad for their support and cooperation to him and C4C. The C4C got eight MPs in Kono district.
The National Chairman of C4C Party, Mr. Tamba Sandi expressed shock at the decision of their leader to resign from the C4C Party and described it as a great loss to their party. He said that they will continue to serve the people of Sierra Leone and work with the ruling party.

 

Grace Counseling Services & Partners Raise Awareness on Negative Effects of Drug Abuse

Lovetta Sankoh, the Founder and Counselor of Superseding Grace Counseling Services (SGCS)

By Theresa Kef Sesay

Lovetta Sankoh, the Founder and Counselor of Superseding Grace Counseling Services (SGCS) admonished young and elderly people to abstain from misusing drugs or using illegal drugs saying doing so have the potential to destroy their destinies.

“Drug abuse can kill destiny,” she said, adding that drug abuse is currently a pandemic in our society furthering how statistics have proven that one in four deaths is as a result of drugs abuse. She again stated that more than seven million people are currently suffering as a result of drugs abuse disclosing  how Superseding Grace Counseling Services (SGCS) believes in using God’s words in counseling young people so that they can contribute meaningfully to society. She added that they believe that young people are potential change agents of society.

“If you don’t believe in yourself who would,” Madam Lovetta Sankoh asked rhetorically, adding by quoting Philippians 4:6 which says “Be careful for nothing, but in everything you do in prayer and supplication, make your request known to God Almighty with thanksgiving”.

She therefore called on young people to discover their true purpose in life, adding that by so doing they will discover their true purpose in life. Madam Lovetta defines a man or a woman of purpose as someone who wakes up early in the morning goes out there to do something that is useful. She said that the misuse of Tramadol is very harmful to someone’s health, adding that drug abuse can kill someone’s destiny.

She prayed for drug abuse to go down in Sierra Leone, adding that many young people with great destinies have lost their lives as a result of drug abuse. She went on to say that Superseding Grace Counseling Services (SGCS) offers free counseling services stating that their office is situated at No.2 Peter Lane, Campbell Street in Freetown.

She therefore called on people to give out support to the Counseling center and help the to teach young and elderly people to abstain from using illegal or harmful drugs.

Professor Joe. A.D Alie, Dean of Post Graduate Studies Fourah Bay College said that one of the ways to tackle the abuse of drugs is through awareness raising programs, adding that engaging youths at Ataya base and other places will help a lot in raising their awareness on the harmful effects of drugs abuse in the country. He went on to say that peer group counseling is also very important, adding that it will help to figure out why many of them get themselves involve in anti-social behavior.  He said that perhaps, they might even proffer solutions. Professor Alie went on to say that government needs to come up with specific programs like jobs creation program to engage the youth.

“There is no short cut to progress and where there is a will there is a way,” said Professor Alie. He encouraged young people not to lose hope by using harmful drugs as it is not a solution to their problems.

Doctor Amos Mani Boima of Blue Shield Hospital in Freetown said  there are so much problems attached to the abuse of drugs, adding that drug abuse can lead to fighting and stabbing of someone to death. He said that because of the misuse of alcohol, marijuana and cocaine many young people are currently suffering with lot of health complications that might lead to death. He disclosed that the abuse of drugs can lead to hypertension and stroke.  He applauded Superseding Grace Counseling Services (SGCS) for taking the lead in raising awareness on drugs abuse.

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