Isatu Jabbie Kabbah has taken to the defence of the New Direction Government over the withdrawal of security detail from former President Ernest Bai Koroma in the last few days.
The former First Lady told the BBC that her husband, the late Dr. Alhaji Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, was treated in a similar manner just after he left office.
“A huge number of our security detail was withdrawn and nobody provided us reasons why this was done. But we did not make any fuss about that as is being done now,” IJ kabbah noted.
She also disclosed that benefits owed her husband were delayed and most facilities due to the former head of state were denied him, Madam I J Kabbah noted.
IJ Kabbah is currently the Women’s Leader of the breakaway National Grand Coalition Party. She was a staunch SLPP member until her breakaway prior to the March, 2018 elections that saw her former husband’s party winning the elections.
She has been tipped of trying to make amends with the SLPP with a view to return home.
The Minister of Information, Mohamed Rado Swarray, noted that the changes to the security detail of the former President was a routine activity, especially so when the former president’s security detail has lasted for almost a year.
He noted that they, as a Government, are not concerned about the fact that the former President does not have a single security guard as of now, since it is not their fault rather the former President has chosen not to have one.
Assistant Inspector General, North East Region, Ambrose Sovulla, has loosely defended the so-called rotation of troops by the Police and the military, noting that this was done to avail the former security guards of training and development opportunities. This, he noted, is routine and could not tell whether such postings and transfers were also done in other parts of the country.
As Regional Commander North, he could not tell whether the former President is without security detail at the moment. How could the Military and the Police withdraw personnel for training purposes at the same time? Is it a coincidence for the two forces to withdraw their personnel for training purpose? He noted that the rejected personnel that were supposed to deploy at Ernest Koroma’s house are on standby waiting for further directives.
Many have blasted the continuous tit-for-tat by the New Direction Government on the All People’s Congress thereby shaking the peace and national cohesion fabric of the country. Changing the security detail of the former President at this time has been described as very susceptible.
This is the second time the Police are withdrawing security from public officials, including former Vice President Sam Sumana and now former President Koroma. Government officials are all over the place trying to defend the recent action of withdrawing security guards from the former President. Even when the former President has directed his concerns to the Inspector General of Police, the New Direction Government is jittery defending their action by calling a press conference and also taking interviews in radio stations.
The Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs and Publicity Secretary of the Sierra Leone Peoples Party has rubbished claims that Guinea is sending troops to provide security for the former head of state, noting that Sierra Leone is a sovereign state and has total control over her affairs.