Africanist Press’ Chernoh Bah Questions Silence Over Sierra Rutile Deal Under Bio and Koroma Governments

Seven years after President Maada Bio took office, the public still has no answers about investigations into the sale of Sierra Leone’s shares in Sierra Rutile under former President Ernest Bai Koroma.

Journalist Chernoh Bah of the Africanist Press says there has been no official update on what happened with the corruption investigations that were launched at the start of Bio’s presidency. One of the main issues raised during that time was the way Sierra Rutile was sold under the previous government.

Bah says the same companies and contracts that were under review during the Koroma administration are now being used again by the Bio government. He says these contracts, including those in mining, energy, and telecommunications, have been handed over to companies linked to current government officials.

One of those companies is Leonoil Company Limited, which now controls Sierra Rutile. Bah says there has been no public explanation on how Leonoil took over or whether the deal followed the country’s finance and procurement rules.

He also questioned what role the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) played in the process. According to Bah, the ACC has not shared the results of its investigations into the previous government or explained how key state assets changed hands.

Bah shared a document that he says shows how the ownership of Sierra Rutile was transferred. The full content of the document has not been made public, but he says it supports his concerns about the deal.

So far, there has been no response from Leonoil, the government, or the ACC. There is also no public record of Sierra Rutile’s financial condition since the takeover.

The Africanist Press says it will continue to report on deals made under both the APC and SLPP governments.