By Edward Vamboi
It has emerged last night that members of the poro secret society in Masiaka town, Koya Chiefdom, Port Loko district, North of Sierra Leone have vowed to drastically deal with Abu Bakar Mansaray for escaping from the initiation exercise on the night of 25th December 2019.
The Town Chief of Shongo, Pa Rok Kamara said Abu Bakar’s former friend Ibrahim Koroma invited him to his Village to enjoy the festive period which he accepted not knowing that he has included Abu Bakar’s name for initiation into the secret society without his consent and approval.
The Chief said on December 24th 2019, several young people including Abu Bakar visited the village for the festive celebration.
“In the early hours of Christmas day, December 25th over thirty young people including Abu Bakar were assembled in one place and taken to two different shrines inside the thick forest for the initiation process against their will. Abu Bakar who wept bitterly said he was not interested to be initiated but the members threatened to deal with him if he persists,” the Chief said.
The Principal of the only Senior Secondary School in the community and also senior member of the poro secret society, Ahmed Tunkara said Abu Bakar had no way to escape the initiation because of the tight security provided by some local militia in the thick forest. He said the first batch of twelve gallant people were taken to the thick forest but only seven fortunately returned while the remaining five died in the initiation exercise.
The second batch which included Abu Bakar also went to the same bush to do the initiation. He said Abu Bakar told the people that he wanted to ease himself and was allowed to go ahead at the back of the farm hut.
He said Abu Bakar used the opportunity to escape in the thick forest for days, which prompted the elders to dispatch some able bodied men to go in search of him.
He said society members searched for him in the thick bush for weeks but could not see him.
“We have declared a man hunt for Abu Bakar Mansaray. The society members want him dead or alive. We will deal with him for escaping from the initiation exercise. We will teach him a lesson for others to know that no matter what one does, he will never escape from us,” a senior member of the poro society Pa Yamba Sesay said in the presence of irate youths.
A hunter from Mathoir Village Pa Alimamy Turay who later rescued Abu bakar said the escapee had horrible experience while in the thick forest for two weeks. Mr. Turay said he kept Abu Bakar for days in his hut before finally taken him to his home town, some twenty five miles away.
Sources in Masiaka town revealed that after realizing that Abu Bakar has resurfaced in his home town, his former friend Ibrahim Koroma who had earlier betrayed him connived with the society people again to hold Abu Bakar to penalize him for abandoning the initiation without the consent and approval of the society elders.
This latest development puts the life of Abu Bakar at risk as angry youths were moving from one village to the other searching for him.
It was as a result of the pressure from the society members that prompted Abu Bakar to leave his community for an unknown destination and since then his whereabouts remains unknown.
