By Alpha Saidu Bangura, Washington DC
Alhaji Ahmed Tejan Kabba and chief Sam Hinga Norman were best of friends.As a manifestation of true friendship,after the 1996 elections, president KabbaH appointed chief Norman to the position of deputy minister of defense. Because of the wonderful job Hinga Norman and the kamajors did during war, kabbah promoted chief Norman to the position of minister of Internal Affairs.
It is true that the kamajors acted for and on behalf of the Tejan Kabbah administration and huge amounts of tax payers’ money was given to chief Norman for his kamajors. Since they were friends, president Kabbah never asked Chief Norman to properly account for the huge amounts of money he(Norman) received from government.
Had it not been for that fact that the bond of friendship between them is now broken, there is no way Hinga Norman would have given us these revelations. I am most respectfully appealing to the Special Court to get to the bottom of all the allegations chief Norman is making against his good friend, president Kabbah.The people of Sierra Leone have the right to know the truth because this is not the first time the names of president Kabbah and chief Hinga Norman are associated with criminal acts.
In 1967, Hinga Norman was one of the soldiers who conspired and kicked out the government of Sierra Leone by unlawful means.Also, in 1967/68 after a proper investigation into the activities of president Kabbah as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Trade,the Justice Beoku-Betts commission presented its report to government.In the report, the commissioners clearly stated that Ahmed Tejan Kabbah is someone who is unfit to hold a position for which good character and honesty are a prerequisites.
We the people of Sierra Leone gave president Kabbah over 29 years to reform himself before he was elected president of Sierra Leone.But it seems as if his long stay in the United Nations system did not do him any good.Indeed nobody can teach an old dog new tricks. He is the same old Ahmed Tejan Kabbah.
This should be a lesson for the next administration in Sierra Leone. Party patronage is not good for the country. Government officials must be appointed by merit. The leader must make sure that he/she properly examines all public servants by name, by character and by past record. I also, want the next leader to keep two things in his/her mind:
Firstly "your best friend can be your worst enemy". Secondly, "Those whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes blind and deaf".
Photo: Alpha Saidu Bangura
Comments