Sierra Leone Telegraph: 29 December 2018:
Sierra Leone’s Anti-Corruption Commissioner – Mr Francis Ben Kaifala, this week handed-in a cheque for over Seven Billion Five Hundred and Seventy-Eight Million Leones to president Julius Maada Bio at State House, after several public officials agreed to settle their corruption cases out of court.
Deputy Commissioner of the ACC – Shollay Davies, said it is customary practice for the Commission to hand-over to the President, funds recovered from corrupt individuals for transfer to the government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund, in line with Section 139 of the Anti-Corruption Act.
Mr Davies said that the ACC under the leadership of Francis Ben Kaifala, has increased the recovery of stolen funds by 801%, since the review of the ACC Act in 2008 by the Koroma government.
Based on agreements already made with corruption suspects, the Commission is expected to recover a further Le 5,000,000,000 (Five Billion Leones) and over $ 700,000 (Seven Hundred Thousand Dollars) in the next six months, he said.
She said that, this marks a new era of good public financial governance in Sierra Leone, and noted that the fight against corruption in the country is beginning to improve, and setting the momentum for the Commissions of Inquiry.
Receiving the cheque, president Bio said he is extremely pleased with the efforts by the ACC to end corruption in the country. He spoke about the relentless work being done by the ACC in providing hope that the country is moving in the right direction.
The president said that the funds recovered by the ACC will be used to construct a national medical diagnosis centre of excellence for all Sierra Leoneans.
“Apart from the hospital, we will use monies recovered to build a new office for the ACC that will be symbolic. Going into the New Year, I have reasons to smile because you are delivering on my promise to fight corruption. I am extremely happy for you. This is a new Sierra Leone and we are heading for a beautiful destination,” said president Bio.
Well done ACC. Continue the good work. This should serve as a warning to current government officials. No more free tif tif…
Bravo to the ACC and its Commissioner for work done so far in recovery of stolen state assets. However, I fail to see any deterrent factor for future corrupt officials if all they do is enter into out of court settlement with no jail time. By virtue of agreeing to pay back money, these officials are in effect pleading guilty of misappropriating public funds and in my humble opinion, there must be some jail time to act as a deterrent.
Well done, but I must point out that we are looking at hundreds of millions of US Dollars, and ACC have to move rapidly.
HIP HIP HIP!………………HURAH. I say this three times. President Bio said that the funds recovered by the ACC will be used to construct a national medical diagnosis center of excellence for all Sierra Leoneans. Is this the beginning of a HEALTH AND MEDICAL REVOLUTION in Sierra Leone?
This is the first time ever a sitting president is thinking of putting the health of the people of Sierra Leone first and working towards it. This is what we call put our or your country first. The slogan fits in this sense. I hear people say that they want to put Sierra Leone first. But how? I say FANTASTIC, MARVELLOUS and AWESOME to this wise idea from a revered president.
This has always been my dream and the dreams of many Sierra Leoneans – having an ultra modern medical facility in our country; and now it seems that Sierra Leone through president Bio is going to get one. In that respect, I pray for the president and the ACC to get all the money they can from the corrupt officials and strengthen our health services by building this fantastic and marvellous national medical diagnosis center of excellence. I have no time to wait for the completion of that medical centre. God will surely answer.
Having the right medical facilities have long been overdue. Every Sierra Leonean will agree regardless of political party or ethnicity. Illness, sickness or diseases have no boundary. They can spread anywhere.
What a wise first step towards a HEALTH and MEDICAL REVOLUTION in Sierra Leone. Just forget about that bridge president Bio. This center is more important. People can swim to Lungi if they care.
Has president Bio already won the hearts and minds of millions (maybe the whole country?) of Sierra Leoneans like me? Certainly yes. Again in 2*2*?
I am pretty sure that the project will get advice on a wide range of issues concerning medical or technical, when it begins. There are a lot of experts (Sierra Leonean medical and engineering experts) out there who will give advice and even lead such projects if the government wants to. This I will assure everyone.
LONG LIVE THE START OF THE HEALTH AND MEDICAL REVOLUTION! LONG LIVE THE ACC! LONG LIVE PRESIDENT BIO! LONG LIVE THE REPUBLIC OF SIERRA LEONEAN!!
BRAVO! Good job. Keep digging patriots.
Frankly, a lot of past and present corrupt officials are going to get a hell of problems with the government of president Bio through the ACC. I said this because of an observation. They say, a picture is worth a thousand words. Look what is in front of president Bio in the second picture. Is one of those gadgets in front of Bio his mobile phone? Dr. Francis has a smart phone in front of him. You can see it clearly.
All three gadgets in front of president Bio are not smart phones. Maybe I am wrong. It might be that they are for the press. If it’s the president’s mobile phone, then president Bio is penny-pinching (crabit in Krio!). This translates as to why we are hearing that the country is dry and difficult. If the president is penny-pinching, then public funds are going to be controlled and hard to come by without good reason. He is going to monitor everywhere.
If people are complaining and grumbling that the country is difficult, then, it’s because the president has made a tight grip on government funds and spending?
If people are waiting for free money to flow out of the government treasury again, then they are going to wait for a long long time or till corruption commences again. I am wondering if its ever going to be possible.
Government officials are afraid now to engage in corruption because of the work of the ACC. They are also witnessing in real time what is happening to their colleagues. There is no way nowadays to get money out of the treasury through corruption I guess.
So, let us be patient and see whether the country and its people will enjoy after the government completes it’s clean up. Workers should from now on get used to their monthly salaries till things get sorted out. It will be difficult in the short term. But things will get better by God’s grace.
My advice is, don’t attempt to get extra through corruption. You’ll be caught. Well done ACC for recovering some of the government’s money taken unlawfully out of the treasury.