Councillor exposes ex-Chairman… ‘Fergusson Is A Big Thief’

By Chernor Ojuku Sesay

Friday February 24, 2006

A former Councillor in the then Freetown City Council Committee of Management under the Chairmanship of Henry Fergusson, Councillor Hector A. Turay has described Fergusson as “a very big thief, a liar and a dishonest man”. Concillor Turay said Fergusson was running the then Council as his personal property without consulting Concillors on most pertinent matters.

“He never discussed with any Councillor neither did he received any Council’s approval for tampering with Crown Agents Fund in the UK to buy that rotten Street Sweeper and that half-back he calls a Meat Van. That is not a Meat Van, it is a half-back. A Meat Van is a vehicle that is well refrigerated and not that one whose truck was built right here in Freetown”, Councillor Turay said angrily.

Councillor Turay said he was one of the Councillors who called for the setting up of a Commission of Inquiry to investigate the stewardship of Henry Fregusson.

“The Commission of Inquiry was set up but its recommendations were kept secret by the Local Government Minister, Sidikie Brima without disclosing its contents to neither the Council nor the general public simply because the report was damaging on the part of Fergusson. It was because of this he sneaked out of the country to London. I challanged him to sit face-to-face with us and face the press”, Turay challanged.

Councillor Turay accused Fergusson of misusing Council funds by making numerous trips abroad without the knowledge and approval of Council.

He said Fergusson illegally employed three non-Council workers as domestic servants in his house without the knowledge of the Council but were all paid through the Council funds.

“His daughter always used his official vehicle whenever Fergusson is out of the country and fuel and driver provided by the Council amounting to millions of leones”, Turay claimed.

He questioned that if the late Madam Gloria Smart was forwarded to the Anti-Corruption Commission and was hauled for a mere $500, why is Fergusson who embezzled over Le700,000,000(Seven hundred millio) is allowed to walk freely in this country?.