“Arthur is a Vocal Politician Who Hits Hard But Not an Ex-Combatant” – Crispin Cole

Crispin Cole a cousin of Arthur Elnathan Efayomi Pearce said that “Arthur is a very vocal politician who hits hard over the radio but he is not the type that will work with ex-combatants to cause mayhem in his country,”

Pearce has been in detention for over 10 days now despite several calls for his release by Civil Society Organizations, Journalists, Human Rights Defenders and international organizations.

The detention of a vocal and prominent Western Area politician, Mr. Arthur Elnathan Efayomi Pearce, is unlawful according to the dictates of the current Sierra Leone Constitution which says nobody should be detained for more than 10 days if being investigated for crimes of subversion.

Similarly, other persons who have recently been arrested and detained beyond the constitutional ten (10) days, are all now considered as being under unlawful arrests.

The Forum of Sierra Leonean Youth Network (FOSLYN) said in a release that the continued detention of Arthur Pearce and other detainees are contrary to Law and that such persons must be either charged to Court or granted Bail.

Sources close to the investigation said that the continued detention of Arthur Pearce “is not because of faked WhatsApp screenshots as many initially believed but because Arthur has been named in a sinister plot to destabilize the country along with some ex-combatants”.

This claim was discarded by family members of the detainee.

The Government of President Bio is now being asked by pressure groups that it should respect constitutional rights of all citizens and not detain people beyond 10 days.