Residents in northeast region of Sierra Leone which include: Bombali, Tonkolili, Koinadugu and Falaba districts, have expressed utter dismay and grave resentment over the non- availability of their Resident Minister (Resmin), Abu Abdulai Koroma, in the region to address their problems and other issues of concern.
According to the people, their Resmin, Abu Abu who they describe as “Bo Minister” has abandoned his duty post and responsibility but for which he had taken oath for from the president.
They argued that Abu ,Abu will only be seen in the four district headquarter towns when invited or whenever there is news of President Bio or Vice President Dr Juldeh Jalloh paying a visit to one of these districts towns.
The predominant topic of discussion in the entire district headquarter towns in the region is centred on having a new Resident Minister who will always be available and be ready to serve them diligently.
Recently, in Bombali district, an incident happened in Kagbankuna town in which police raided and beat up people, and arrested the Town Chief and many of his subjects.
The elders from the village rushed to the house of Resmin to seek help and address the issue but, Abu Abu was not available in the district as he was residing in Bo.
Also, in a similar incident, according to our sources, some students who rushed to the minister’s residence to seek assistance from him in Makeni, having been stopped from attending lectures at the EBK university for defaulting to pay their fees but could not find the minister home.
The students were told he was staying in Bo.
According to the people, the
minister, Abu, Abu, has been staying away from his designated ministerial office. And because of his absence, this has hampered effective service delivery in the northern region.
Some government officials and other traditional authorities alike have also expressed their bitter concerns over the minister’s decision to abandon his ministerial residence.
Inhabitants of the four districts have appealed to President Julius Maada Bio to appoint a new Resident Minister who will serve them well in the region like ambassador Bond Wurie in the northwest.
“Abu Abu has not built a house here in Makeni but in Bo.” Youths at Kabala Lorry Park in Makeni City added that even SLPP’s supporters in Makeni city are disgruntled with Resident Minister, Abu, Abu.
Critics say the decrease in total votes in Bombali district from 18,000 in 2018 to 8,000 in 2023 polls for the ‘greener party’ was as a result of the total absence and ‘lame-duck’ attitude of the Resident Minister and the garrulous district chairman, Mohamed Saffa aka Magambo.
All efforts to contact the Resident Minister at his Bo residence on cell phone proved futile.