Mr. Abdul Rashid Thomas
The Editor
Sierra Leone Telegraph
London
United Kingdom

Friday December 23rd 2022

Dear Mr. Thomas,

Your Publication of July 19th 2021 entitled: “APC secretary general is in business partnership with First Lady Fatima Bio”

The attention of the First Lady of Sierra Leone, H.E. Dr. Fatima Maada Bio has recently been drawn to the aforementioned, patently untrue publication by your newspaper and we have been requested by the First Lady to contact you to seek a retraction and a full apology from your otherwise reputable newspaper.

Here are the facts contrary to what you have published:

1. H.E. First Lady Dr. Fatima Maada Bio has never met or spoken to the erstwhile APC Secretary General, Ambassador Osman Foday Yansaneh, in her entire life. She does not know him. She has never been introduced to him. She has never met him.

2. It follows from the above that she therefore cannot be said to be in any form of Business Partnership with Ambassador Osman Foday Yansaneh.

3. It further follows that Ambassador Yansaneh cannot be said to be engaged in “leaking sensitive APC information to Mrs. Fatima Bio” as the two people just don’t know each other and have never communicated with each other.

4. The First Lady does not know the son of Ambassador Yansaneh named Mugabe. She has never taken any photograph with the said son.

5. The First Lady has no business dealings with either the allegedly fraudulent “African Link Company” or its alleged successor company. She has no shares in any such business.

6. It therefore follows from #5 above that it is patently false to assert in your publication that “First Lady Fatima Bio took over [African Link Company] without due process of the country’s procurement regulations”.

7. It also follows that it is patently false to publish that the First Lady of Sierra Leone Fatima Maada Bio gave or received shares to or from Osman Foday Yansaneh.

Now, Mr. Thomas let us inform that it is most unfortunate that because of the high reputation of your newspaper, your untrue publication has been re-carried on several other online news outlets including the “Sierra Loaded Newspaper” and so many other re-publishing entities.

We therefore believe an unqualified retraction and sincere Apology from your Newspaper will go a very long way in restoring the damage your publication has caused.

First Lady Mrs. Maada Bio, like her husband, is a firm believer in Freedom of the Press and in the practice of Responsible Journalism; where Editors promptly acknowledge mistakes when they happen and their attention is drawn. Therefore, First Lady Dr. Fatima Maada Bio looks forward to receiving such Apology and getting a published Retraction from your Newspaper.

This letter is being copied to Sierra Loaded Newspaper which had re-published the unfortunate article from your news site. We hope by copy herein, they will also do the needful as journalism professionals.

Yours sincerely,
——-
AbuBakarr Joe Sesay
Coordinator, Strategic Communications Unit.
Ministry of Information & Communication

CC: Minister of Information & Communication.

CC: Deputy Minister of Information & Communication.

CC: Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information & Communication.

CC: Secretary to the President.

CC: Chief of Staff at Office of the First Lady

CC: The Editor, Sierra Loaded Newspaper.

CC: President of Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ)

CC: Independent Media Commission (IMC)