Liberian President, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has sought to clarify a statement she made in an interview with a British newspaper about gays and lesbians in her country. The following statement was posted yesterday on the website of the Executive Mansion of Liberia:
Punish police over arms shipment!
Like with many blunders that are made in Sierra Leone no one has been reprimanded, let alone penalised or forced to resign for the botched police arms shipment that rocked this nation for months.
There have been no apologies by any of those who just a couple of weeks ago were so stoutly and garrulously defending the bringing into the country by the Sierra Leone Police of arms and ammunition that are enough to fight Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb under the guise of policing November’s election or securing the homes of diplomats.
Big boost for Kono road project
The African Development Bank on Thursday in Tunis approved two grants and a loan amounting to USD 34.08 million to finance the rehabilitation of the Masiaka-Sefadu road project in the northeast of Sierra Leone, according to a release from the Bank.
The road to the country’s diamond-rich Kono district has been in a decrepit state for years and despite repeated promises by successive governments, it has not been fixed leading to the soaring of prices of commodities.
Concerns over land use in Salone
A two-day conference of land owners which closed yesterday in Freetown has challenged transparency in land acquisition and use in Sierra Leone, calling for effective environmental management of land, water and vegetation in lease areas to prevent destruction of resources.
Machete attacks on the increase
By Alpha Abu
People living in the extreme east end of the capital, Freetown are becoming increasingly alarmed at the spate of machete attacks on residents by robbers.
These attacks are concentrated in the highly populated Wellington community, with the police virtually incapable of stopping them.
Victims in most of the cases, described the robbers as young men wearing only boxers with no clothes, and apparently high on drugs. They carry out their attacks in a ruthless manner hardly imagined of any sane person.
Over visa fee increase, US, Sierra Leone in a tit-for-tat
The Governments of the United States and Sierra Leone have increased by $ 20 nonimmigrant visa fees for each other’s citizens wishing to visit each other’s country.
Effective Friday 13 April 2012, Americans and Sierra Leoneans will require to pay $ 160. A press release from the Sierra Leone mission in Washington DC says the increase is as a result of an announced increase made by the US embassy in Freetown, calling it “consistent with the principle of reciprocity which governs relations between countries on consular matters”.
