By Frances Wright
The 10th August 2022 will go down as a very ugly chapter in Sierra Leone’s history as violent protests erupted in the capital city of Freetown and other parts in the Northern Province, politically considered to be the stronghold of the main opposition All People’s Congress (APC) Party. Although these protests will later on be interpreted along political lines, however, by all indications the prevailing high cost of living, subjecting many to substandard lifestyles, actually catalyzed people to venture out and vent their pent up anger. As far as they are concerned the incompetence and ineptitude, on the part of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), to judiciously handle the economy has led to extreme hardship never encountered before.
What started as something very small really turned out to be a serious demonstration propelled by frustration and anger as the number of protesters, mainly dominated by young people, grew in sheer size, displaying anti-government placards and chanting slogans depicting having no confidence in the President and the entire Government.
However, it was not really a field day for the protesters as there were security personnel, made up of the Police and the Military, deployed at strategic locations with the main objective of warding them off. As the situation became very tense, with time elapsing fast, the security forces initially fired teargas canisters in the air geared towards dispersing the violent crowds that were advancing from various angles, especially in Freetown, towards the city centre. Live bullets later followed with some fatalities.
Government reaction was swift and tainted in anger against the protesters in the aftermath of the incident . Visibly angry, President Julius Maada Bio, who had to cut short an overseas engagement to return home, condemned the protesters, calling them terrorists and vowed that a Commission of Inquiry will be instituted and anyone found wanting will face the full force of the law.
The Police are also conducting an investigation amidst carrying out arrests of individuals identified as the main brains behind the protests. For those arrested during the protests, it was disclosed that they will soon be charged to court.
During a Police Press Briefing, emphasis was placed by the Police of the necessity to look out for three individuals, namely Abdulai Sankoh, Mary Juana and Augustine Turay, whom they believe have a lot to reveal. According to the Police, they are more interested in getting hold of Abdulai Sankoh for the simple reason that, from their intelligence, he was mainly the one who was not only coordinating the protest but was also inciting others to put up a stiff resistance against the security personnel leading to some officers being harmed or injured in the process of the protest.
One of our reporters, who have been monitoring the situation, stated that Sankoh’s house has been raided twice by Police personnel ransacking the whole place and leaving threatening remarks.
What has made the situation become very alarming is the fact that there are certain vigilante groups, said to be made up of supporters of the ruling SLPP Government, going around and arming those considered to be diehard supporters of the opposition APC Party.
These incidents have even become very fearful and dreadful to an extent that it has created panic in some communities especially when news break out that a fanatic supporter of the APC in the Northern Provincial City of Makeni was identified and shot at amidst other unconfirmed incidences of similar nature.
Up to the moment of going to Press it has not been confirmed, as alleged, whether or not Abdulai Sankoh, Mary Juana, and Augustine Turay were really working in the interest of the main opposition APC Party. Their decision to vent their anger because of difficult economic times, through a protest, resonates with many who think that things must change for the better instead of allowing it to degenerate into a full-blown crisis.
However, the fact remains that the Police have mounted a serious manhunt for them. If what is muted in some quarters is anything to believe in, a really gloomy future awaits them. This is because if arrested, as some have attested, they will be taken to a notorious detention center, tortured to make confessions, charged to court, and most probably sentenced to jail terms exceeding five years. As the situation continues to unfold, for now the three are at large.
