By Saio Marrah
Relocation of the Sani Abacha Street Market Women is set be announced by government before the weekend, according to the Executive Secretary of the Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion(ICPNC), Hawa Sally Samai, without naming the specific location.
She said this while responding to questions at the government’s weekly press briefing, organised by Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) in Freetown yesterday Thursday, 25th August, 2022.
The destruction of the market women’s stalls happened during the nights of the three- day curfew following the August 10 violent protests.
Samai said: “We are in dialogue with different sectors and one of those is the Market Women’s Association. Yes they have reported the issue to us already and we have started having dialogue with the appropriate authorities and I am sure before the weekend something will come out or some commitment for their relocation in the shortest possible time.”
She added: “As I speak to you, there are already things that have been put in place,” while responding to the question about the action the commission has taken in relation to the dislocation of the market women.
The peace commission boss also explained during a PowerPoint presentation about the mandate of the commission which include devising strategies and measures to prevent, manage and resolve conflicts and to build, promote and maintain sustainable peace through national cohesion.
She said the policy objective of the commission is aligned with goal three of the Mid Term National Development Plan, which stresses on a society that is peaceful, cohesive and secure.
Samai said it is also aligned with Goal 16 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063 aspiration -4, which talks about a peaceful African continent.
She said the policy objective also includes promotion of peace, reconciliation and unity, and developing national systems for early warning signs and rapid response.
Research, training and strategic partnership engagements with other government line ministries are among its strategic policies.
She also noted that the commission is to provide a framework for mainstreaming national cohesion and integration into a national development programme.
According to her, it also focuses on evaluating the implementation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Bintumani 3 recommendations prioritize and adopt measures to facilitate the implementation of those recommendations.
The key deliverables of the commission include developing a three- year strategic plan (2022 to 2024) to define the strategic direction of the commission in promoting peaceful co-existence and national cohesion through media, consultations, training and establishment of 16 mediation centres in all 16 districts in Sierra Leone.
While talking about the election preparedness of the ICPNC, she said they are focused on proactive preventative measures or mechanisms that include rapid response so as to maintain calm and uphold cohesion before, during and after election as one key pillar of its operations.
She also acknowledged that despite Sierra Leone being positioned 4th in Africa and 46 in Africa on the 2022 Global Peace Index, there is always a growing concern about national fragility which could degenerate into a state of chaos during the election period.
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