Shears Moses white paper Govt. cannot ban Mayor or Musa Tarawallie

Business

The much awaited government white paper on the Shears Moses Commission of Enquiry into political violence and intolerance occurring in Gendema, Freetown and Kenema which occurred in March 2009 was finally released Friday 23rd March 2012. The white paper went on to address the findings of the commission some of which the government stated it accepted but was clear that the government hands are tied and could not effect the recommendation for relieving the Mayor and Internal Affairs minister of their positions and banning them. Indeed in its second “Immediate Action Recommendation” the Shears Moses commission had said “We recommend that steps be taken for those responsible for the acts of violence in Freetown and Gendema to be relieved of their responsibilities and barred from holding any public office for a period of at least 5 (five) years. The Mayor of Freetown, Herbert George Williams, and the Resident Minister South Musa Tarawallie are being specifically mentioned.” This is the most controversial aspect for which the opposition Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP) had been calling for action. On this the government states in the white paper that it “however regrets its inability to legally effect that recommendation as the banning of citizens from holding public office (other than by law) recommended by the Commission is not provided for in the laws of Sierra Leone” As a result the white paper explained that “in the case of the Mayor of Freetown, Herbert George Williams, he was duly elected by popular vote for a term of four years. This mandate cannot therefore be overturned by the government through administrative action.” On its position on the former Resident Minister, South, and now Internal Affairs Minister Musa Tarawallie, the government simply said it “assures the public that appropriate action will be taken in due course in that regard.” The Shears Moses Commission had also stated in its fourth “Immediate Action Recommendation” that “Members of the security forces, who have betrayed the trust put on them to protect the citizens, and found to be unprofessional in their activities, or support violence, should be dismissed from their employment to serve as a deterrent to others in future. In this regard we specifically indicate Mohamed Turay (Yete Yete), Idrissa Kamara (Leatherboot). In this respect the white paper states that on Mr. Mohamed Turay’s (alias Yete Yete) issue government “will refer the matter to the Police Council” and Idrissa Kamara (alias -Leatherboot) will be referred to “the Inspector-General of Police.” The white paper also mentioned that “Government is actively considering the enactment of the Political Violence Act which will provide for punishment and the banning of convicted individuals from holding public office for a number of years” as a means to deter the perpetration of political violence. In its seventh immediate action recommendation the commission stated that “We recommend a restructuring of the police force as it appears there is a lack of co-ordination between the very senior officers. In this case the A.I.G. Operations at the time said he was not notified of the events of the 13th March 2009, until 16th March 2009. There is dire need for the re-introduction of ranks as Commissioner of Police, Deputy Commissioner of Police, senior assistant Commissioner etc. which was one of those phased out by an Inspector-General of Police, Keith Biddle, making this country the only one in Africa without a commissioner in the police force. A single handed restructure, we think was undesirable and so not reflective of our social structure. This is a root for the lapses in the performance of the security forces (the police) during such crisis. In furtherance of this, we recommend that there be no further promotion from Chief Superintendent to Assistant Inspector-General until after such restructuring of the force. The structure of the police should be founded on the principle of hierarchical subordination, discipline and social obligation, and not on parallel lines and partisan basis.” In its response through the white paper the government states its position that “Regarding the recommendation for the restructuring of the Police, Government wishes to state that a restructuring exercise of the police was carried out a few years ago, and that the current challenges confronting the police are being addressed by the Police Council.”

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