Freetown — The Skeptics' view about History as a subject is that ' History teaches nothing'. That the human race does not imbibe the lessons of History; and as such continue to repeat aspects of our awful History. When this continues to happen, the proverbial Shakism: "dog eat dog world" re-emerges afresh.

Take for instance what happened in Sierra Leone, after a macabre 12 year civil war, which ended only in a British intervention ( after all else had failed).

The then peace conferences of Lome, Abidjan, Abuja and elsewhere ushered in the current peace the country is experiencing. Then followed the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which, as a matter of fact, granted a general amnesty to all combatants, thereby forgiving all the warriors.

Yet, the ring leaders of the R.U.F. were prosecuted by the Special Court for Sierra Leone and are currently incarcerated in Rwandan jails. Once in a while they are brought to The Hague to testify against Charles Taylor. So the question is: How general was this amnesty?

As the country settles into relative peace, the bees' hornet is being stirred. The country is being whipped once again into a frenzy by talk of prosecuting former N.P.R.C officials.

Prominent in this call is the expressed desire to legally try Brigadier General (Rtd), Julius Maada Bio for the execution of erstwhile Inspector-General of Police Bambay Kamara and others. Bio was part of NPRC-1 under Valentine Strasser. Lieutenant Bio was then only a Public Liaison Officer 2 (which was then a very minor role in the whole NPRC hierarchy).

It was by a dint of hard work, professionalism and maturity that Valentine Strasser saw the sterling qualities of this silent but determined war hero he had met at the war front in the initial days, that he made him his Vice Chair: when the erratic S.A.J Musa was driven out of Freetown by his own comrades.

For one, Brigadier Bio is credited to have been the military leader who conducted the elections and handed over power to a democratically elected government in Tejan Kabbah's SLPP. Allegations then were rife that he'd wanted to cling on to power by canvassing with the Paramount Chiefs in the provinces on a YES vote to continue his military dictatorship. Yet he had the magnanimity to hand over power to the winner of the 1996 general elections.

If Maada wants as at now to contest for the leadership of his party and country, there should be no qualms about that, in my opinion. Nothing legal precludes him from that right.

Will these inquests currently demanded by the ruling government also include the inquests of the following: The 1974 execution of M.S. Forna, Ibrahim Bash Taqi and 12 others under Shaki's APC? Shaki's acolytes like E.T. Kamara, S.I.M Turay and others currently reside in the West with a lot of Sierra Leonean blood on their hands. The respective Home Offices should sooner or later start knowing about such elements who currently live in the West as refugees.

What about an inquest into J.S. Momoh's execution of his VP1, Francis Minah in a trumped up coup d'état supposedly machinated by Bambay Kamara?

In an interview recently published, the ruling APC Scribe, Victor Foh said trying former NPRC officials can finally heal the wounds of the 12 year war. What he forgot to know is that the wounds are still festering. And what he is suggesting will definitely throw salt on these wounds.

Way back in June of 1991 when the war had just started, and Victor Foh's house in Jimmi Gbagbor was ransacked and looted by the RUF, in exasperation, he commented that if the rebels had got in touch with him, instead of vandalizing his property they could have been at the threshold of Waterloo. At this time, did that amount to support for rebels? Only Victor Foh can say!

In essence, let sleeping dogs lie. For each and every Sierra Leonean has been offended by one past government or the other. Tejan Kabbah, at a very young age was sent into exile by Shaki. Did he revenge when he became President? J.S. Momoh was given a pension. So should Valentine Strasser under Ernest Koroma. Will Kabbah also be tried for the execution Kula Samba and others?

The Valentine Strasser predicament

As Sierra Leoneans chuckle and laugh at the condition of their former President for 4 years, ironically, they mock themselves. For where ever Valentine Strasser goes he will always be identified as Valentine Strasser of Sierra Leone. As such, he is already an Ambassador of the country.

There are a very few Sierra Leoneans as renowned as Val. It thus behoves the dignity of the country to uphold his morale. That is why Ernest Koroma, with his perceived sense of justice and fair mindedness should accord Valentine Strasser his pension. He was hailed at one time for overthrowing the then one party government of J.S. Momoh. This has no similarity to what Ernest termed "the New APC."

Valentine may be poor now because he did not steal much from the Sierra Leone treasury. But the most important question is: where are Valentine Strasser's associates in the then NPRC? Maada Bio, Komba Mondeh, Idriss Kamara and Karefa Kargbo are all surviving somewhere. Where is that camaraderie that propelled them from the bush to Freetown? Are they showing it to their former distressed boss? They too need to measure up!

News sources in Freetown say that it is only Brigadier Komba Mondeh who helps Strasser, his friend, in Freetown. And if, as Leonenet forumites write, Valentine Strasser is adrift and suffering in Dakar, Senegal, the government of Sierra Leone should tell him to contact the nearest Sierra Leone consulate in the Sene-Gambia region for help.