The reconstruction of the Kailahun district’s clock tower has hit a snag due to low tax compliance among citizens, according to the district council’s Information, Education and Communication Officer, Mohamed Alie Koroma.

The project, initiated during the tenure of former chairman Alex Bonapha (2012-2018), was met with controversy when his successor, Ahmed Keke Sahr Lamin, who took office in 2018, decided to partially dismantle the structure for aesthetic reasons.

Years of delays in the project’s completion have sparked frustration among residents, who have voiced their concerns on social media and local radio stations. They have also questioned the expenditure of taxpayer money on a project deemed non-essential by some.

In response to these concerns, Koroma explained that the sluggish progress is directly linked to the low tax collection rate. He emphasized that the clock tower, alongside other projects, relies heavily on revenue generated by the council through tax collection.

“Many people do not want to pay tax, and those projects are solely supported by the council based on our own source revenue,” Koroma stressed. He urged residents to fulfill their civic duty by paying their taxes to ensure the project’s completion.