By Alpha Abu
The President of the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ), Ahmed Sahid Nasralla says all must share collective responsibility for the August 10 violence that occurred in parts of the country.
Nasralla made the observation during a meeting with President Julius Maada Bio at State House last Friday, which was also attended by representatives of Civil Society Organisations and the Bar Association.
He told President Bio that the government, the opposition, the security sector, civil society, the media, the clergy, and Sierra Leoneans in the diaspora should all take responsibility for the events of that day.
He said the engagements the president has started is the right way to go and called on all to stop playing too much politics which he said has promoted hate, undermined peace, self-rule, and national divide, and eroded core values of dignity in labour. He called for de-escalation and urged President Bio not to be angry but to manifest a conciliatory tone and help address the problem as he has started doing with the various stakeholders.
“Let us engage. It is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of STRENGTH. You break down recalcitrant and ill-motivated people, when you talk with them rather than talk to them, or talk at them”, Nasralla stated.
Nasralla registered SLAJ’s condemnation of the violence and criticised what he cited as too much politics that are eroding the Government’s development programmes.
On the violence that Wednesday in parts of Freetown East, Waterloo, Tintafor, Kamakwie, and Makeni, that left five Police Officers and over twenty civilians dead, he reiterated SLAJ’s position for an independent and impartial inquiry and for due process of the law to be instituted.
He said the political opposition should focus on constructive criticisms and alternative ideas to the government’s development initiatives. He said he was yet to see the opposition condemn virulent and ethnic diatribes on social media that puts the government in a bad light.
He said: “The role of the opposition is not to undermine the Government of the day but to work with it in the interest of the general good”.
On the role of the media in Sierra Leone, he asked for the support of the public to help the media in safeguarding the country's democracy, promote peace, and national cohesion.
He said people are all mourning with the Police for their slain colleagues but also encouraged the Force to show concern for civilian deaths and respect for the rights of those that have been detained in connection with the riots.
Nasralla also admonished Sierra Leoneans living abroad to refrain from inciting audio and videos on the internet that will undermine the peace of their homeland.
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