Reverend Hassan Mansaray who was convicted on fourteen count charges of corruption 10 days ago, at the Freetown High court, was on Friday fined the sum of Le250m (two hundred and Fifty Million Leones) or go to jail for six years by Justice Jon Bosco Katutsi.
Before the start of Friday’s proceedings, the courtroom had been filled by beneficiaries and sympathizers of both accused, who are Rev. Hassan Mansaray, General Overseer of the Lords Ministry Church and President of His Healing Helping Hands 4HIM (a non-governmental organization), and Abdul Aziz Bangura-Accountant of the same organization respectively.
Lawyer Michael I. Kanu representing the State, disclosed in court that the Anti- Corruption Commission (ACC) Act of 2008 had a uniform sentence for all principal corruption offences under section 37 of the Act on which the accused were convicted, explaining that the section gives the Judge the discretion to either impose fine not less than Le30m (thirty million Leones) or imprisonment not less than three years or both, and according to him, the prosecution is respectfully inviting the Judge to impose a custodian sentence on both accused.
He opined that when you take into consideration the seriousness of the offence, its extent and nature and also criminal intention to damage the victim of the present case, the beneficiaries and even the donors, he will like to submit that the criteria of seriousness was informed by public interest and the scourge of corruption and scavenging effect, need not be under emphasized, adding that public interest including the orphans, polio victims, out- ways that of the applicant in the said matter as ‘half is never better than none in this case, the beneficiaries need to get their full package’
Speaking on behalf of the first accused Rev. Mansaray, defence Lawyer Roland Wright maintained that the accused spent his entire adult life serving God and the rural community in particular, long before the arrival of the donors and well-wishers, as he single- handedly established over fourteen branches country- wide with his own little money, and therefore invited the Judge to take judicial notice of the charismatic churches based in Freetown with their heads having expensive and luxurious cars, which his client differ to, as he directed his attention to the poor and needy, on whose lives he made significant impact.
Lawyer Wright states that it was as a result of the accused expansion of his church, that he thought it fit to open an orphanage to help children who lost their parents during the war, as they are the ones present in court occupying the seats as beneficiaries and not mere spectators, explaining that his client may have been convicted, but in the beneficiaries minds, he is still their savior, so imposing custodian sentence on him will cause more suffering to the orphans than good, as that will lead to their destabilization, which he urged the Judge to take judicial notice of, when sentencing the accused.
Lawyer Pius Sesay representing the second accused, adopted the submission of Lawyer Roland Wright maintaining that his client started serving the organization without any salary, just to help the first accused achieved his aim of helping needy children in the country.
Delivering the sentence, Justice Katutsi disclosed that it is shameful for a personality like the first accused to be found guilty of forgery, as the position he holds in his church, adding that he did not hear anything about remorse from Counsels representing both accused and disclosed that ‘Parliament in its wisdom, gave fine as first option and then sentence if necessary as second option’ as he decided to go for the fine option on this case and then fine the first accused Rev. Mansaray Le30m or 3 years imprisonment each on counts 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,11,12,13,14 and Le250m or 6 years imprisonment on count 10 which has to do with forgery
Justice Katutsi opined that the first accused Rev. Mansaray should go for the highest fine of Le 250m or 6 years imprisonment to be paid within 30 days and disclosed that both accused should go home free and find the money to be paid within the stipulated period.
On hearing the judge’s pronouncement, the beneficiaries of the orphanage together with their relatives and church members rushed out to congratulate the defence Lawyers and then started dancing within the court premises, as they await the release of Rev. Hassan Mansaray and Abdul Aziz Bangura
By Alhaji M. Kamara
August 5, 2013
ADVERTISEMENT