Commentaries
The NASSIT Deal: Crooked or Straightforward the Public Has a Right to Know
By
Jun 16, 2008, 18:36

This is not about recalling, rewriting or restating the words of Aristotle that the public has a right to know about the activities of the governors, it is about transparency and accountability and getting state officials to account and live up to the expectations of the masses that they always claimed to seek their interest.

Just few days back, what could be described as a deal between NASSIT and the former coffee hustler who was exposed by the 1967 Beoku Betts Commission of enquiry was struck in Lebanon, the Capital City of Beirut. Perhaps, a little introduction about the Man who is the mid-player in the entire building deal would comfortably jog the memories of the general public to  know that  this same individual is still exploiting and robbing the people of this country under different guises in collaboration with state officials.

His name is Mukerzel, once a closed friend of ex-president Ahmad Tejan Kabbah at the time the latter was Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Trade. Those Sierra Leoneans who may have gone through the report of the Beoku Betts Commission of enquiry would have read about this individual and how he conspired with state officials to sell a ship load of coffee. Ex-president Kabbah would definitely not want his name to be mentioned or aligned with this individual either because of the scandalous nature or the dimension the entire coffee deal took that caused the ex-president to disappear from the public view of Sierra Leone to the west where he spent considerable period of time. He later re-surfaced and became the leader of Sierra Leone’s oldest political party-SLPP and became the president of the country. A lucky guy eh?

Mukerzel had leased the former United States Embassy building for ninety-nine years from the late Prime Minister Sir Albert Margai. The building was later sold to him according to research carried out by this writer at the Administrator and Registrar General’s Office. All through this period, prior to the sale; a certain Lawyer-politician in the country was benefiting financially from the proceeds of rents paid by the Americans and when the deal was struck he received 10% from the $2.5Million paid by NASSIT.

Mukerzel is the major shareholder of the Commodity Trading Company (CTC)in Freetown managed by Mr. Arif Halloway, and has his headquarter in Ghana where his son is the Chief Accountant and also a principal shareholder of the business. The former United States Embassy building is not the only assets owned by this former coffee conspirator. There is a building on Hill Cot Road, currently occupied by some members of the IMMAT team and several other businesses managed by the Halloways who are acting as front to deceive Sierra Leoneans.

The purchase of the building has now been confirmed by the legal representative of NASSIT who parochially is arguing that his institution was not engaged in any shady deal. He may be right in his opinion, because he cannot bite the finger that is feeding him, but in the view of the masses who are contributing to the scheme the deal was not only shady but was done without the consent and consultation of the contributors to the scheme. The argument that it was approved by members of the NASSIT Board is not only ridiculous and illogical but nonsensical. This is because the board is not seeking the interest of the masses, but the government that appointed them to these offices, also they are more concerned about sitting fees and what they can benefit from NASSIT and the dubious transaction. The NASSIT Board is not the representative of the people but the government, therefore Parliament(the people’s representatives) should have  been consulted and approval given prior to the purchase, unfortunately it never happened because Edmond Koroma of NASSIT thought that the establishment personally belongs to him and can take any decision without going through parliament for approval, forgetting he was placed as head of that institution to take care and managed  the affairs of this public entity that belongs to the people.

Without any exaggeration or doubt, the entire transaction was not conducted in any transparent manner; therefore Edmond Koroma is under the obligation to give account to the people of this nation who are contributing to the scheme. If according to the NASSIT ACT, contribution to the scheme is compulsory by Sierra Leoneans, therefore any amount of money that should be withdrawn from the scheme to which the people are contributing to must have their approval through their representatives in the house of parliament.

Further, the venue where the transaction took place is very questionable---in Lebanon. The question that Edmond Koroma should immediately respond to is why Lebanon should be used as a market centre for a $2.5Million deal to take place? What percentage was assigned to him and a few others who took part in the dubious arrangement? Mr. Koroma should know that this is not about personal relationship with any member of the class of governors of the state but the future of the ordinary worker who is struggling to contribute to the scheme for him/her to attain a comfortable future when he/she retires.