The Local Unit Commander of the Kabala Police Station, Momodu Y Koroma has disclosed to Awoko that they have in their possession a total of 6 guns, arrested from local hunters who most often mistake human beings for animals when they go hunting.
According to the Police boss in Kabala, the guns arrested by the police are locally made guns but they are very effective. “The evidence that normally comes out is that hunters mistake human beings for animals. For now we are having only four of these gunshot cases.” The issue of gun shots in the district of Koinadugu, LUC Koroma said, is still going on and that, “it is like the UNDP’s arms for development Programme did not work well in Koinadugu district because we keep on having shooting incidents.”
The LUC said, “there is not a month that we did not get cases of shooting incident in my area of operation and we have made arrests and the guns are in our possession and we have also charged to court”.
Asked about the cooperation of the Judiciary in Kabala in delivering justice to people charged to court by police officers, the LUC said, the judiciary is very cooperative “The magistrate actually needs funding. She is tasked to be responsible for her own fuel as she is being supplied just 8 gallons of fuel for 2 weeks and from Makeni to Kabala and back, it is 10 gallons. She is being supplied 8 gallons from Makeni to Kabala and back to Makeni. So virtually you leave her tank very empty. This has been her constraints”, Koroma said.
Speaking on the crime rate in the district, he said he conducts “an effective night patrol team and as such, crimes like robbery don’t come up like that. The only cases of such nature has to do with the shooting of guns by hunters”. The Kabala Police Boss said, crime rate is reducing drastically. “In the case of assault cases which are prevalent, we had 18 cases in May and now we have 11 cases and this is because, we are now getting court sittings, justice is being done, and the youths are now being told their responsibilities towards the development of the district”.
He paid tribute to the people of Kabala for working with the police through the partnership board that they have in Kabala with community people. “The partnership with the community is encouraging. Community people have been helping in reducing crime rate. Notwithstanding that, the police try by all means to investigate cases with the community and we are also trying to be transparent in our activities especially in investigating cases”. He disclosed that in most cases, when they want suspects they just send to the paramount chiefs and they [chiefs] normally cooperate with them in handing over those suspects to police. “In essence we are having effective community relations”, he said.
Asked to talk on sexually related offences, the police Boss said they are currently having about 9 cases related to sexual abuse like rape and unlawful carnal knowledge. “These particular cases are on the increase and I’m surprised that in a Muslim dominated community like Koinadugu, these offences still continue to surface”. He said they normally don’t compromise with the community in investigating these cases irrespective of the good community relations between the police and the community. “We don’t encourage out of court settlement. We don’t compromise sexual offences. Once you had been brought to the police on sexual related offences, we pursue such matters to the end’
On political activities in the district, the police boss said, they have not received any complain of political intimidation and that as a Police force, they are well prepared for the coming local council election. “We have enough logistic and capacity for the pending local elections. We are well resourced” and revealed that notwithstanding the preparedness of the police, “Koinadugu has been classified as a middle threat zone, people are one and the same. All the people are looking in one direction”. He said it is only the APC party that is serious with the issue of political campaigning as the other parties have often talked of lack of funding to undertake their political activities.
“For now I see the APC to be serious with the issue of campaigning, other political parties complained of lack of funding for their campaigning despite the fact that dates had been slated for them to campaign. It is even difficult for them to be holding meetings. When I found out that almost all the parties are not holding rallies like the APC. I called and asked them to know why and they said they had no money”.
The Local Unit Commander disclosed that 10 people have already resigned their candidature. “So automatically, things are getting even softer for us” he said. Asked whether reasons were given by the candidates for withdrawing from the pending elections, the LUC said, they did it on their own volition and not on security reasons.