Sewa News Stream

  Sierra Leone's passport is currently ranked #70 among residence and citizenship by investment programs. Meanwhile, Sierra Leone's "Passport Bros" are offering passports for prices as low as $140,000. Why is this occurring? It is due to President Maada Bio and his associates being deeply involved in corruption, which allows kleptocracy to prosper at the expense of the citizens. No country in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region should be selling passports for $140,000, except Sierra Leone, where it is reported that a drug lord finances the president. To acquire citizenship in Sierra Leone, one must make a donation of $100,000, purchase property worth $200,000, invest $1.5 million, provide $400,000 per investor, and pay $150,000 to the University of Sierra Leone. Some non-Africans in Sierra Leone are still denied access to its heritage and business opportunities, despite many having contributed significantly more than the $140,000 fee. In comp...

Last week, several newspapers reported that a district court in the Netherlands had ordered convicted drug trafficker Jos Leijdekkers to pay over 96 million euros to the Dutch state. This ruling followed a confiscation procedure that initially sought a record 221 million euros in criminal assets. Prosecutors believe that Leijdekkers, a central figure in international cocaine smuggling, is receiving high-level protection in Sierra Leone. This week, the Gleaner newspaper reported that Abu Bakarr Naorie, also known as Buba NaOrie, has been identified as the mastermind behind a suspicious boat believed to be involved in cocaine transportation in Freetown. Naorie is the owner of a fishing company and is currently under scrutiny due to the recent discovery of a vessel suspected of transporting illegal substances. The fishing company has been accused of using its fishing harbor and cold storage facilities as fronts for drug smuggling operations. According to allegations, Naorie oversaw these ...

  Fifty years ago, on July 19, 1975, I looked in fear at the lifeless body of Ibrahim Bash-Taqi hanging on the high brick wall of Pademba Road in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Taqi was executed by hanging alongside former finance minister Mohamed Forna, Army Lieutenant Habib Lansana Kamara, and Paramount Chief Bai Makarie N'silk at Pademba Road. The turmoil began after a disputed election in 1967, which led to a military coup that overthrew Sierra Leone's civilian government following independence. This military rule lasted just over a year and ended with another coup that reinstated Siaka Stevens, whose All People's Congress (APC) had won the 1967 elections. Between 1968 and 1969, tensions grew between the APC and the opposition Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), which had governed from 1961 to 1967. Dissatisfaction increased among some APC members, leading to the formation of the National Democratic Party (NDP). This party fueled opposition against the APC through newslett...

Jos Leijdekkers, a.k.a. Boll Jos, remains in the headlines of Sierra Leone's newspapers despite the president's denial that he knows the wanted Dutch criminal Bolle Jos, reportedly his daughter's boyfriend or husband.  Recently, videos surfaced showing Bolle Jos celebrating with high-ranking officials in Sierra Leone, prompting the government to announce that it has launched a search for the Dutch fugitive.  Meanwhile, a Dutch journalist covering the Bolle Jos case was detained in Sierra Leone. Shaken by her experience, journalist Sophie Van Leeuw left Sierra Leone and shared her observations about the oppressive methods used by the Maada Bio administration to silence dissent and restrict press freedom.  This week, further reports emerged revealing that the Sierra Leone government is bribing and threatening local journalists to prevent them from reporting on the wanted Dutch drug trafficker, Jos Leijdekkers. According to De Telegraaf, several reporters in hiding have disc...

In January 2013, Tablet , an online magazine focused on Jewish news and culture, featured Sierra Leone's parliament, which was built with Israeli assistance. The article, with the headline "The Al-Aqsa of Africa," paid homage to the building, symbolizing the long-standing relationship between Israel and the African continent. Since Sierra Leone's Siaka Stevens severed diplomatic relations with Israel following the Yom Kippur War, Israel and Sierra Leone have gradually rebuilt their diplomatic ties, which date back to the 1960s. Over the years, 657 Sierra Leoneans have benefited from various programs in agriculture, women's empowerment, education, health, community sustainability, and renewable energy, among others. In 2017, this relationship deepened with the visit of then-president Ernest Bai Koroma, marking the first-ever visit of a Sierra Leonean president to Israel. During the Ebola virus epidemic, Israel was also the first country to deliver humanitarian aid ...

From Charge d'Affaires Kathleen FitzGibbon Dated: September 21, 2014 The House-to-House Ebola Talk campaign continues throughout the country and is an amazing show of national unity. Sierra Leoneans have embraced the effort and are welcoming the dialogue. The radio stations are playing Ebola-related songs, public service announcements, and discussions with experts. The people I have spoken to feel that something needed to be done to bring information about Ebola to arm each household for the ongoing battle. Operationally, the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, the World Health Organization, World Food Program, United Nations Population Fund, UNICEF, MSF, and other international non-governmental organizations are working around-the-clock to get those seeking treatment into centers and testing and providing proper burials to corpses being found. This has not been an easy task and we will have a better idea of what the challenges countrywide are after the districts have an o...