By Prince J Musa in Kenema
The findings of the recently concluded Commissions of Inquiry (COI) and the government White Paper endorsing its recommendations must not be attributed to tribalism, a group of civil society organizations have told the people of Kenema.
The activists were in the eastern district as part of ongoing efforts by the government and accountability campaigners to depoliticize the fight against graft, after the recent release of the COI report and the government White paper on its recommendations sparked tension along ethnic lines.
This division was seen at play earlier this month in Makeni, where supporters of former President Ernest Bai Koroma came close to clashing with security forces over attempts by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to question him over his alleged involvement in corruption during his term in office.
Koroma, his party and his supporters believe he is being targeted for political reasons.
The civil society group Accountability Now organized the event in Kenema on Monday, 19th October, which attracted participants from the security sector, civil society, local government, women’s groups, and youths. The organization said the objective was to explain the content of the White paper and let the populace know that it has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with accountability.
"Sierra Leone has been crying for accountability for a decade," said William Soa Lamin, Executive Director of Accountability Now, noting that the “backwardness” of the country was a result of public officers not been accountable to the people for the services they provide citizens.
Lamin explained the genesis of the current situation, from the campaign promises the SLPP-led administration made while in the opposition to fight graft, to the formation of the Government Transition Team, whose findings paved the way for the COI.
"For quite a long time civil society has been talking about accountability and transparency in this country," Lamin said.
''Former president (Koroma) told the people of this country that he would run this country as a business, and we want to account for the profit he made or losses to the people," added Lamin.
The activist said they were looking up to the government to live up to it's promises in fighting graft. He stressed that no one expected the fight to be easy.
The regional civil society chairman, Augustine Sannoh, said that as civil society in the provinces they will continue to provide the education to the rural communities on the government White paper, while stressing that the report and the efforts by the government to prosecute corruption had nothing to do with politics.
"This is nothing about politics or ethnicity, but the welfare of the citizens, which is supreme," he said.
He noted that those who have been found wanting for mismanaging the country's resources didn't do so for any ethnic group or region.
Moses Mambu of the civil society consortium said this current move by the Bio administration should serve as an example, stressing the need for the government to pursue the recommendations of the COI to the latter.
"This is a precedent for the current public officers in this government to be careful," he said, adding: "as civil society we are happy for the broad step taken by the president, because we didn't see any White paper when Ernest Bai Koroma assumed office."
A community women's leader, Miatta Sia Ndogba of Burma community, explained what she said was the frustration shared by women of Sierra Leone.
"As women and as citizens, we are not happy with how this country has been defrauded over the past ten years. If we are crying for hardship these are some of the factors responsible for our suffering," she said.
"Our authorities were accountable to themselves, not to us the citizens. This has to stop," she added.
Fatimata Dassama, a member of the 50-50 group, told the gathering that children and women will continue to suffer if corruption continued.
"Government should not down play the recommendations of the White paper if this country is to develop," she said.
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