The Sierra Leone Police amazes me. They are truly the masters of crime; and they are not always on the same side of the coin. Sometimes, they are the perpetrators. Not all the apples are rotten though and I say kudos to those few (or many) police officers out there who are performing their duties and keeping to their code of conduct.
To those police officers who think they can do otherwise, I say the public still has its voice. One day I was coming from town and I saw something that I cannot keep to myself. I decided to call it the new Police Policy because the police officers seem to have abandoned their duties and now chase after Poda Poda drivers not because their insurance has ran out, but because they have not paid their dues. The traffic officers positioned at Safecon and Ferry Junction have gotten into the habit of collecting money from drivers on a daily basis for no reason in particular. I heard all of these from the horse’s mouth. A driver was questioned by some passengers when one errand boy for a police officer collected money from him. The passengers who knew what was happening rained insults on the errand boy, but he didn’t even seem to care.
The driver explained that they had no choice but to pay up because if they don’t, they would have to answer to fabricated charges either behind a police cell or at the court of law. Their vehicles are stopped and some errand boy comes along to collect the money. Passengers who have already been exhausted from the terrific traffic at the center of town would have to wait until the drivers pay the money and then they can continue with their journey. If the drivers don’t pay up, their vehicle registration number would be taken and charges would be filed.
The drivers seem to have no choice. They have to choose between giving the police officers Le.2, 000 or spending much more money fighting a court case they might not win; not to talk about the fact that they may lose their jobs.
It is kind of ironic that even though the president is trying his hardest to fight corruption, it is still imbedded in the middle layers of society. Who is doing the cover ups? Are the police bosses benefiting from all of these, as some have suggested? I don’t have answers to these questions, but probably, you do. I am certain though that the police are taking money from drivers because I was in the vehicle while it all happened.
Tags: Anti-Corruption Commission Sierra Leone Police Traffic Wardens Corru
