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SLPP Member of Parliament for Pujehun District and former Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, Hon. Sidie Mohamed Tunis, has reportedly called for an investigation into an alleged visa fraud involving his name and a person he says he has never employed.
Tunis told the Global Times that the United States Embassy in Freetown informed him yesterday that he did not qualify for a visa to travel to the United States, despite his previous visits to the country.
According to the report, a Note Verbale allegedly sent by Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation to the US Embassy in 2023 requested visas for Tunis and an individual identified as Chabatan Bah, described as his Executive Assistant.
Tunis, however, denied ever meeting, employing or working with Bah in either his capacity as Leader of Government Business or as Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament.
“I have never employed anyone for that role. In fact, this name is strange to me. I am hearing this name for the first time,” Tunis reportedly said, adding that he did not even know whether the person was male or female.
The former ECOWAS Speaker has consequently asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation to urgently launch a thorough investigation to establish who allegedly facilitated the visa application using his name.
Sources cited by the newspaper claimed that Bah was issued a US visa and travelled to the United States with Tunis but did not return to Sierra Leone. The allegation has not been independently verified.
A spokesperson for the US Embassy in Freetown declined to comment, saying, “We do not comment on individual visa applications.”
Tunis was reportedly included on the official Government of Sierra Leone delegation list for travel to New York for this month’s United Nations General Assembly.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation had not publicly commented on the matter at the time of publication. The alleged visa irregularity remains under investigation.
