If customers of rice importers and consumers are currently experiencing strange tastes in imported rice, then it is due to the influx of expired and unlabelled products in markets and stores across the country.
Customers and consumers should therefore not be doubtful as the supplies and sales the expired and unlabelled rice in the markets being unlawfully condoned by top leaders of the security sectors, specifically from the Chief of Defence Staff Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces and the Inspector General of the Sierra Leone Police, whose personnel are serving as illicit defenders of the rotten rice deal.
As recent as Friday 25th November 24th, 2022, FORUM among a team of investigative journalists discovered thousands of tons of expired and unlabelled rice at SAMCO FISHING COMPANY’s cold room under heavily guarded armed personnel of the SLP and the RSLAF at Cline Town in the east of Freetown.
On arrival at the expired and unlabelled rice store, workers under heavily armed guards were seen on the spot transferring the rice products from the expired bags to new and unlabelled ones whiles businesswomen were lined up at the SAMCO FISHING COMPANY’s gate waiting to buy their fair share of illegal quotas of the products for sales to the public in markets everywhere in the country.
Micheal Kondonor, an SLP personnel attached to the Criminal Investigation Department, Central Division and RSLAF officers including one Hindolo and his co-workers who refused to disclose their particulars confirmed to the team of investigative journalists that they were deployed at the expired and unlabelled rice cold room now being used as warehouse by their RSLAF and SLP bosses. They said that they were deployed at the store to protect the company’s sales of the expired and unlabelled to customers for consumptions.
Asked about the management of the business for further clarifications, the RSLAF personnel, Hindolo who was unethically dressed in half military uniform, rudely replied: “No you cannot see him. In fact, he is not around. And you can never see nor even be able to talk to him on this. So even if you come back any other time it will be fruitless for you people to talk to him because it is not me duty to allow you to talk to him”.
In a bid to further confirm the exact condition of the rice product in question, the team of investigative journalists were prevented by the SLP and RSLAF personnel on grounds that the company’s management is not ready for media engagement and that journalists can go ahead and report whatever they want.
The protection being provided by SLP and RSLAF personnel in defence of SACOM sales of illegal food products is a clear indication of compromise in the enforcement of the laws of Sierra Leone by those who are paid to enforce the law. However, it was later revealed that SAMCO FISHING COMPANY who lacks the requisite capacity to store rice, is left with the only option to use its cold room to store its expired and unlabelled.
Efforts in trying to get the IGP SL CDS RSLAF for their various clarifications of the deployments of their personnel Hildolo and the SLP personnel Kondonor proved futile.
