By Hassan Bruz, in Port Loko, Northern Sierra Leone.
The Rolal Road cemetery in Port Loko is undergoing some self help reconstruction work. The work is being done by members of the ‘Rolal Community Youths’ with support from the Resident Magistrate for Port Loko and Kambia Districts , Abdul Sheriff (shown in photo). This is the road that leads to one of the very few cemeteries that have survived from the indiscriminate land grabbing and subsequent selling in the Maforki Chiefdom Headquarter Town of Port Loko.
Kabeie Sesay, the leader of the group said the work commenced in earnest some few days ago and was now at top gear. He said the idea was developed out of their desire to ease the plight of both the residents of Backdad and those that travel to and from that community. He said the lack of maintenance had reduced the road to a bush path with ditches therefore converting it to what can be better described as a ‘death trap’ especially for motorists. He said it was so dangerous and slippery for pedestrians especially in the rainy season. He even cited the case of a corpse that recently tumbled from the hands of its carriers and fell into a pool of water in the road.
Port Loko Magistrate Abdul Sheriff who lives in that part of town told this reporter that Rolal Cemetery Road is nothing to write home about. He said the road has no drainage system and is often ‘a no go zone’. Apart from the regular damages it causes on his vehicle and the corresponding huge costs of non- refundable repairs, he said the road has also been an immense embarrassment to himself and most of those who would like to access his residence. He spoke of the several times he has got stuck with his vehicle in the middle of these ponds and how it used to take several hours before he could be eventually bailed out by people in the surrounding homes.
The Magistrate said he has been so much impressed by the initiative of these Young People that he decided to physically participate in the road work in addition to his financial contribution. He viewed the initiative as one that is geared towards community development and that his physical presence could serve as a motivation for effective work.
Magistrate Sheriff stressed the need for the timely intervention of other key stakeholders so that the issue of this road could be properly addressed once and for all. He said most of the members of this workforce were either job seekers or those conditioned to stay home by the control measures mapped out against the spread of Ebola in the country. The Magistrate considered his intervention as a mere start and went on to explain the possibilities of any of those members to quit the community service as soon as one is availed with the opportunity of gainful employment elsewhere. He told emphasized on how it would be good for the community elders, traditional authorities together with the Port Loko District Council to intervene without further delay.
Meanwhile the leader of this workforce, Kabeie Sesay said his team is comprised of redundant workers of mining companies, DJs, artists, teachers, job seekers and students has lauded the efforts of Magistrate Sheriff for both his physical and financial contributions towards their undertakings. He however outlined the need for tools and food for as some of the most crucial challenges they were faced with.
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