By Hassan Ibrahim Conteh
In the wake of the disturbing proliferation of gang violence, the Sierra Leone police say it is ready and armed well enough to quell any violent activity.
Director of Operations at the SLP, Assistant Inspector General Al Sheikh Kamara, said the police would not allow anyone to threaten the general peace.
“We don’t want people to threaten the nation into submission. So our men are ready; we now have pepper spray and stun gun to resolve any violent activity,” he told a press briefing last week.
The briefing was held at the conference room of the Police Headquarters in Freetown. It was convened in the wake of violence at the musical show of hip hop star Kao Denero, whose real name is Amara Denese Turay.
Mr Turay, who is based in the United States, was supposed to launch his latest album at his first show in the country since after the 2014-2015 Ebola epidemic.
The rapper accused the police of causing the violence at the Siaka Steven Stadium on Saturday December 12.
The police though blame him and his supporters for the chaos.
At the press briefing, Inspector General Francis Alieu Munu said the violent behavior of the youths at the show had raised so much of public concern in the country.
According to sources, many people were seriously injured in the chaos and were hospitalized. The police were criticized by the public and there were allegations that they fired tear gas at the rappers` fans.
But Mr Munu blamed the youth, saying their violent behavior at the botched Stadium show sent ‘sock waves’ and presented a bad signal. He said a lot of damage were caused on private properties and that many lives were threatened.
Munu said addressing anti-social attitude among the youths required collective responsibility, and not the sole task of the police.
‘’The issue of gang and clique is not only the responsibility of the police alone but the schools, the community members…if members of the public corporate with the police; we will be able to deal with the problem satisfactorily,’’ he said.
The police chief went on to say that they were going to continue to engage in dialogue as a way of finding solution to the issue of gang activities and change the perception of youths by making them responsible citizens.
“We should help them to become responsible citizens and not to infringe on citizens who are going on their normal businesses’’ he added.
The police are especially concerned presently over manning peace during the festive season.
Assistant Inspector General and Regional Police Commander Freetown east, Memunatu Conteh-Jalloh, said the police had met with relevant stakeholders to tackle the issue of gangsterism and cliques in the country, adding that they had also taken robust measures against owners of alcoholic distribution houses and those who were growing cannabis sativa across the country.
According to AIG Memuna, lack of parental supervision can also be attributed to the rapid increase in social menace and anti-social behavior of youths.
Parents, she said, should monitor their children and other charitable organizations of children should develop programs that would aim at eradicating violence in the country.
Memuna also urged religious organizations and the media to join in the crusade, saying that religious leaders should teach young people about morality.
According to the police, 67 people were arrested after the Kao Denero show chaos. They have been charged to court on allegation of fermenting violence.
(C) Politico 21/12/15
