Concord Times (Freetown)

Sierra Leone: Minister Defends Govt's Position On Cocaine Saga

Freetown — Deputy minister of information and communication has defended the position of the Ernest Bai Koroma led government following what he described as calumnies being carried by some sections of the populace in the wake of the cocaine bust.

Mohamed Koroma told Concord Times that they have always been a democratic government that respects the Rule of Law, a principle that must be understood and adhered to in dealing with the welfare and security of the citizenry.

He stated that the Koroma government should not be misunderstood and misinterpreted because of the insightful way it has been handling investigations into the US$200 million cocaine saga.

"We must not be misinterpreted as a cosmetic of a military regime that does not follow the due process of the law, but a civilised setup that should be paralleled with other civilised nations in the world," he said.

The minister noted that what happened at the Lungi international airport "has or had nothing to do with the day-to-day running of the government, especially now that the case is being strictly investigated by the law enforcement agency." He added: "We will never behave like the previous government, which interfered with the day-to-day running of the security apparatus of the state and even dictated the outcome of sensitive investigations."


Copyright © 2008 Concord Times. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 130 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.

Comments 1 to 2 of 2 Post a comment

  • ncole
    Aug 1 2008, 08:39

    This is a silly and uncalled for statement.

  • JOE LAHAI
    Aug 12 2008, 10:47

    IF YOU THINK THIS BARELY LITERATE, COCAINE SNIFFING DEPUTY MINISTER'S STATEMENT IS SILLY, HERE'S A SHOCKER: OUR APC GOVERNMENT FOREIGN MINISTER CLAIMS THAT THE COCAINE BUST HAS MADE HER THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON ON PLANET EARTH BECAUSE SHE HAS, AND CONTINUES TO RECEIVE CALLS FROM ALL THE MAJOR DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS IN THE WORLD, INCLUDING WASHINGTON, LONDON, PARIS, MOSCOW, ROME, BEIJING, TOKYO,BRUSSELS ETC ETC ETC. THAT A FOREIGN MINISTER CAN TRIVIALISE AN INCIDENT THAT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO EXPOSE THE CITIZENRY TO SCORN, RIDICULE, RESENTMENT AND HARASSMENT AT AIR/SEAPORTS AND LAND BORDERS COMPLETELY BEATS MY IMAGINATION. THAT SHE IS STILL IN THE CABINET AFTER MAKING THOSE UNFORTUNATE AND IRRESPONSIBLE STATEMENTS SPEAKS VOLUMES ABOUT THE COMITMENT OF OUR PRESIDENT TO MOVE THE COUNTRY FORWARD. SIERRA LEONEANS GOT THE CHANGE THEY DESIRED(THANKS TO THE MANIPULATIONS OF NEC, AIDED AND ABETED BY THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY) BUT THAT CHANGE IS GRADUALLY BEING VIEWED AS A MISFORTUNE, EVEN BY THE MOST VOCIFEROUS PROPONENTS OF THE SO-CALLED REGIME CHANGE