BY GIBRIL GOTTOR
A 34 minutes visit to Gbalamuya Common Border Post this evening has revealed several seeming illegal practices involving both Sierra Leonean and Guinean border security Operatives. The visit after a very long time, unraveled high level of security unpreparedness on both sides.
On the Sierra Leonean side, I left on the purpose to see what’s obtaining on the legal crossing point of Sierra Leone and Guinea. It was a volunteer named Ataty I first crossed path with standing closed to the Customs Controlled checkpoint at Gbalamuya with Immigration, Police and NRA in charge of keys to open and close after every Close of Business at 6:00pm. The current NRA Manager, Joseph Rogers, a Barrister in Law, had said he was negotiating with his superiors in Freetown for an extension of the border closing time.
I shook hands with Ataty, a volunteer of NRA and in a trickledown an eye; the gate was sealed, implying Closed of Business. That was 7:28pm Tuesday.
Ataty, the NRA volunteer I earlier shook hands with had told me his bosses were on duty at customs house, when I noticed the gate open beyond CoB for border operations beyond official time (6:00pm). I further visited the main building (office) to ascertain Ataty’s claim that officials were on duty at customs house, but met everywhere sealed.
Were the vehicles I saw crossing unchecked before the sudden closure of the NRA gate passed through customs? Was Ataty caught on “Operation Slap”?
Questions I called the NRA Manager and the Head of Anti-Smuggling both representatives of the country’s major Tax Collector (NRA) in the area for answers, but did not pick up his phone while the phone of the Head of Anti-Smuggle was switched off. Ataty has served as volunteer for NRA Gbalamuya for over 15 years and many called him the third richest laborer within the same authority.
Immediately the gate was closed, I saw bikes diverting to a small outlet called waste pipe. Waste Pipe was apparently created for commercial bikes(Okada) and pedestrians. This outlet is fully in operations Mondays to Sundays immediately the main gate is sealed. Travelers pays Le10,000 each to Police as inducement “booking” so that they could keep blind eyes to the travel, security and health regulations of Sierra Leone.
I witnessed a quarrel between a Guinean soldier, police officers and gate keepers because the Guinean Soldier refused paying Le10,000 on demand by the gate keeper.
The activity at Waste Pipe Gbalamuya, is one of the many seeming illegal cash collection areas for the SLP Kambia Division, Immigration among other Government entities posted. These seeming illegal activities taking place at the gateway and Customs Controlled Area, has made Kambia District the England in Sierra Leone.
WATCH MY SPACE!
