By Septimus Senessie in Kono.
In Kono, Paramount Chiefs, the Anti-Corruption Commission, the Koidu Council and civil society organisations have blasted their Members of Parliament over the Le 63 million given to each of them by the state to enable them respond to the Ebola outbreak.
During the District Ebola Task Force Meeting in Koidu on Monday, they accused the MPs of "failing" their constituents in the fight against the disease.
It followed the confirmation of three new Ebola cases in the district bringing to four the total number of infections in the district, two of whom have died.
The Task Force singled out for exemption the Member of Parliament for Constituency 24, Rosky Momoh Kanneh Mbayo whom they said had been supportive of them in the fight in his constituency in Nimikoro chiefdom.
Chairman of Council of Paramount Chiefs, Kono, PC Paul Gabba Saquee said he was highly disappointed at the Kono MPs "for failing to take the lead in the fight against Ebola".
He said the Le 63 million allocated to each of them was just "a waste of state resources", adding that they were not the right people to have been given such an amount for the fight against the disease.
He said most of the district MPs did not even go to their constituencies to conduct the Ebola sensitisation for which they were given the money, "instead they were lodged in a well air-conditioned hotel in the district and driving vehicles in the township of Koidu while the disease keeps killing the people who sent them to Parliament".
PC Saquee said the Kono MPs should learn their lessons from MPs in Kailahun whom he said had contributed huge sums to the fight against Ebola and bought 200 bags of rice each for their constituents.
Paramount Chief Sahr Cyrus Njevuva Konobundor also alleged that the MP in his chiefdom, Constituency 25, only enveloped Le 500,000 as his contribution towards the Ebola fight after allegedly promising to contribute Le 1 million.
He said he challenged the MP, George Bockarie Torto, which was why he gave the said amount. Torto could not be reached for his reaction.
Chairman of Campaign for Just Mining also expressed disappointment saying the money given to the MPs was "money allocated to the wrong people for that purpose”.
Ibrahim Sahr Hamed Bockarie described the MPs as “a disappointment to Kono by people who only care about themselves.” He said that even prior to the outbreak the MPs in the district hardly visited their constituencies.
Mayor of Koidu Council, Saa Emerson Lamina urged the MPs to come on board the fight against the outbreak which he said had stalled economic activities.
Speaking to Politico outside the meeting hall, the ACC Sub-Regional Manager in Kono, Rev. Bob Kandeh, warned the MPs that “they are not above the laws of Sierra Leone though they are the makers of them”. He said “monies given to them for the fight against Ebola can bring them for interrogations by ACC if they fail to utilise them as appropriate”.
(C) Politico 04/09/14
