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Sierra Leone’s Chief Minister Dr. David Moinina Sengeh has stated that President Julius Maada Bio does not read social media gossip, urging citizens to engage with governance through formal channels rather than “kongosa on Facebook.”
Speaking on Radio Democracy 98.1 FM, Sengeh was responding to questions about how citizens can reach the President following a petition from the Institute for Governance Reform (IGR) that raised constitutional concerns about the Constitutional Amendment Bill.
“You see, governance, we should really treat governance as a responsibility,” Sengeh said. “Your responsibility as a citizen is to engage with governance in the proper methods,” Sengeh stated.
He outlined that formal communication with the presidency follows established procedures. “You can write to the State House, the Secretary to the President receives the letter or email for the President,” he explained. The Chief Minister emphasized that while citizens can email, call, or write to the President through official channels, “it’s not Kongosa [gossip] on Facebook de president dey read.”
The comment comes after President Bio took the unprecedented step of referring the Constitution of Sierra Leone (Amendment) Bill to the Supreme Court for a judicial opinion, following an IGR petition dated 4 September. The petition raised constitutional questions about how Parliament passed the Bill, particularly whether the mandatory two-thirds majority threshold was met.
President Bio, acting under Section 122(1) of the 1991 Constitution, directed the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice to facilitate the referral. State House described the move as demonstrating the President’s commitment to handling matters of profound national importance with “due diligence, transparency and fidelity to the Constitution”.
Sengeh’s remarks on Radio Democracy echo his recent public statements on transparency and accountability. During a separate appearance on AYV’s State of the Nation program, he disclosed that he does not personally know his salary, revealing that his financial account has been managed by another person since he was 19 years old. He described continued questions about his pay as “kongosa business” – a Krio term for gossip.