Maxwell Cole: Sierra Leone Telegraph: 19 December 2023:
This week, the judiciary’s social media accounts announced the dismissal of the seven grounds of appeal presented by former President Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma (Photo above) against the judge-led Commission of Inquiry.
The panel of judges, comprising Hon. Justice Fatmatta Bintu Alhadi, Hon. Justice Komba Kamanda, and Hon. Justice Tonia Barnett, unanimously ruled against the appellant, ordering him to jointly and severally refund Le 70,294,264,523; $3,000,000; and $12,263,821. The court mandated that these funds be repaid into the Consolidated Revenue Fund within 30 days.
The matter centres around a loan made to the Rokel Commercial Bank (RCB which is largely owned by the state) as a government bailout during Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma’s presidency.
The bank was in such financial distress that a certain international financial institution advised the Government of President Koroma to sell it off which the president refused to do. Rather, he tasked the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development and the Bank of Sierra Leone to find better ways of salvaging the struggling Rokel Commercial Bank.
The then Minister of Finance, Kelfala Marah, and the then Bank Governor, Momodu Kargbo, sought a $12 million loan from the Government’s Petroleum Directorate to rescue the Rokel Commercial Bank (RCB).
With presidential approval, the loan was granted, leading to the government’s increased stake in the bank from 51% to 65%. Subsequently, RCB not only recovered but also initiated repayment of the loan to the government which is ongoing.
The RCB has since flourished to become a financial ‘powerhouse’ in Sierra Leone, according to media reports. In 2021, RCB reported 88.7 Billion profit. “…the Rokel Commercial Bank has paid over 17 Billion Leones to its majority (Government of Sierra Leone) and minority shareholders as dividend following a pre-tax profit of Le88.7 Billion recorded for 2021. The dividend represents a significant increase from Le10.6 billion (6%) reported for 2020 financial statements.”
In 2022, the bank made even more gains posting a remarkable profit of Le94 billion (Old Leones) in its 2022 financial statements. This impressive figure marks a 5.96% increase from the Le88 billion (Old Leones) profit recorded in 2021.
Despite such remarkable turnaround owing to President Koroma’s approval of the loan used to recapitalize RCB, upon his election in 2018, the Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP) leader, President Julius Maada Bio, instituted three Judge-led Commissions of Inquiry, one of which, led by Justice Goodwill Biobele, recommended an investigation into President Koroma, the former Bank Governor, and the ex-Minister of Finance and Head of the National Petroleum Authority (PRA), for their involvement in the loan.
The Bank Governor and Finance Minister appealed the Commission’s findings, resulting in a different Court of Appeal panel asserting that the funds were not missing, as evidenced by Rokel Bank’s account, and upheld their appeal.
The following is the judges’ reasoning in upholding Kelfala Marah’s appeal:
“It is the substance of the evidence of Mr. Charles Babatunde Isaac Sylvester Sesay (CW7) at page 424 to 433 of the records in vol. 1 that due to the recapitalization to the Rokel Commercial Bank (RCB) same have helped to prevent a national economic disaster in that Government which had 51% share in RCB before recapitalization now has 65.02% of the shares as the bank became one of a going concern and a profitable commercial Bank. Mr. Charles Babatunde Isaac Sylvester Sesay at page 428 in his evidence in chief inter alia stated to wit: – ‘We understand that Rokel Commercial bank was formed in 1919, the position is – walk on the Street of Freetown, watch the TV, the status is that last year we were able to turn the Bank around, we were able to declare a profit after tax of roughly 62 billion Leones”. It is the evidence that without the recapitalization, the 51% that Government had would have dissipated and the Bank would have closed leading a serious economic downturn.”
Former President Koroma is not guilty of any crime in this matter
The Panel went on to assert that:
“….Hence, on this ground of appeal it is our considered view that although there was blatant breach of the procedure in obtaining the loan leading to the entire process been irregular, what came out clearly having done a review of the evidence before the commissioner is that notwithstanding such irregularity, there was not established any act of abuse of office, misappropriation, maladministration and act of corruption by the Appellant as stated in the finding of the sole commissioner of commission No.64. Rather, the recapitalization has helped to save the collapse of a gigantic institution- the Rokel Commercial Bank – which was considered ‘too big to fail’ and thus became a going concern until now.”
Significantly, the judges made the strong point that:
“…. In the light of the foregoing analysis we hold that it would be a travesty of justice to hold that there was abuse of office, misappropriation, maladministration, and act of corruption by the Appellant. We further hold that although the process of obtaining the loan was irregular, the positive effect of the recapitalization at the end of the day by far outweighs any negative effect same may have caused .”
But President Bio and his SLPP leadership have nonetheless decided to pursue the former President: Is this for political reasons?
The recent panel, led by Justice Bintu Alhadi, diverged from the previous conclusion, stating that former President Koroma misused his presidential powers to order the petroleum sector to bail out Rokel Bank. Consequently, he has been ordered to repay $12 million to the state. Another panel concurrently concluded that the Head of the Petroleum Unit was reckless in granting the loan, mandating a $12 million repayment to the state.
But the amount in question is $12 million so why is the former president and the head of petroleum unit being asked to pay a total of $24 million collectively?
Is President Bio trying to milk the former president to raise revenue for his failing, cash strapped government?
What is noteworthy amid these legal proceedings is that while Rokel Commercial Bank has significantly recuperated as a result of the loan approved by former president Koroma, recording substantial profit, paying large amounts of dividends to its shareholders – the largest of which is the Government of Sierra Leone – RCB continues to repay the $12 million to the government.
The state did not suffer any financial loss as a result of former president Koroma’s decision to approve the $12 million loan to RCB, so why is he now being asked by the courts to repay $12 million?
And why is the former head of the Petroleum Unit also being asked to repay the same $12 million concurrently as the former president?
Where is the sense of justice and equity in this matter, if not driven by political expediency and witch-hunt aimed at punishing the former president?
Despite all this progress deriving from former President Koroma’s decision to approve the recapitalizing loan to the then struggling RCB, he and the former head of the Petroleum Authority have each been ordered by another Panel of Judges in the same Court of Appeal to pay the same $12 million to the same Government of Sierra Leone.
The Court of Appeal’s decision to dismiss the appeal by former President Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma raises significant questions about political interference in Sierra Leone’s justice sector.
The controversial verdict implies a breach of presidential authority in utilizing state resources for a specific bailout, holding him accountable for the $12 million loan to the government owned Rokel Bank.
The differing conclusions between panels of the Court of Appeal provide fodder for the former President’s supporters, who argue that the state is determined to target him at any cost.
While one panel of the Court of Appeal is not bound by the ruling of another panel, substantial disparities in the judgments warrant scrutiny. When the facts of the loan are apparent, and repayment is underway, questions arise about the presence of corruption and political interference in the handling of the case and the order for the repayment of the full amount.
Editor’s Note:
Let us repeat the judgement of the Bio-appointed Appeal Court Justices against former president Koroma, and see whether it makes sense:
“The Appellant, Raymond Saidu Kargbo shall jointly and severally refund and pay into the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Government of Sierra Leone the sum of US$ 12,263,821.00 (Twelve Million Two Hundred and Sixty Three Thousand Eight Hundred and Twenty One United States Dollars) that had remained and not refunded as monies given out illegally as loan by the Petroleum Directorate through the National Commission for Privatisation to Rokel Commercial Bank”.
But the $12 million the former president is being asked to refund is the same $12 million Raymond Kargbo has been asked by the court of appeal to refund. And the $12 million is still with the Rokel Bank, keeping the bank alive. What a country! What a President (Photo above)!
Even though the money was loaned by the former government to Rokel Bank to save the bank from collapsing? Is this president Bio’s sense of justice?
So if the former president and Ramond Kargbo jointly refund $24 million to president Bio, whilst the actual loan was $12 million, is this not by itself bold-face STATE ROBBERY?
What a government! What a Justice system! Little wonder Chief Justice Edwards resigned rather than continue to be a part of a rogue and criminal enterprise.
Well done Chief Justice Edwards! Better late than never!
Now we also know why the country’s Auditor General – Lara Taylor Pearce was sacked by President Bio for doing a dilligent job in helping to manage the country’s finances!
These sickening politicians! The People of Sierra Leone have suffered too much in their hands, since the days of siaka stevens to present day. The effect of the civil war still lingers. Now see what is happening. our future spells disaster. May Allah rescue us.
I am very relaxed about this. I know for sure a time will come when every cent of the people’s stolen money will be retrieved in cash or in kind. Sooner or later, the day of reckoning will come for a thorough and unbiased look at what has happened to our country’s fnances from 1961 to date. A fne-tooth probe of all audit reports, Ex-Presidents’ handover notes and offshore accounts of the Sierra Leonean elite will eventually show who has a clean pair of hands.
President Koroma having left the country with only $2 Billion of debt and foreign currency reserves worth more than 3 months of imports is now alleged to have stuck his fingers on
$17 Million. If that is substantiated, logic will tell you his successor who has almost doubled the national debt to $4 Billion and depleted the foreign currency reserves to about 2.3 months’ worth of imports will definitely have a case to answer in the wholesomeness of time. Whoever comes eventually to clean the stables will also be interested to hear Bio’s account of the lucid accusations by late President Kabbah of illegal payments to Bio’s offshore P.Banga Investments Ltd for a fake Gunboat contract and Passport sales in the dying days of the NPRC military regime.
https://offshoreleaks.icij.org/.
As offshore accounts’ leaks continue at pace, all those illegal loots from the Sierra Leone treasury will be illuminated in due course.There is also the small matter of the APC candidate Samura accusing him in 2018 of swindling $18 million during their time together in the military Goverment.
https://politicosl.com/node/558.
Surely, what is good for the goose should be good for the gander.
As we enter the new year with one of the highest inflation rates in the world (54%), almost 100% Debt/GDP ratio and the President living a charmed life and crying/feigning wolf to scupper things and seek sympathetic attention in the midst of accusations of election thieving, that country needs to press a reset button, given a new slate to write on and get started at year zero.
He will pay that money whether you like it or not
What emerges here is a judiciary which lacks coherence. Only in present day Sierra Leone, under Bio, can a plaintiff be subjected to double jeopardy in the same case which doesn’t even have a solid background. Only in Bio’s Sierra Leone is where a plaintiff is required to repay the same amount of money twice to the government, money that was never stolen or went missing according to this article. The evidence suggests that the only accusation which former President Earnest Koroma and the then Central Bank Governor should have faced was ignoring proper procedures in bailing out the Rokel Commercial Bank to the tune of $12m. Is it a case of theft? No. Did the money find its target? Yes. So why harass the former president and the then Central Bank Governor if we don’t have a witch hunt in our hand.
Any moderately intelligent person should see that the only judgement in this case should have been a little fine for the absence of proper procedures in the bail out of the Rokel Commercial Bank if at all or a stern rebuke,
But former President Koroma should be held responsible for what has befallen him. Had he appeared physically at the Commission of Inquiry this $12m case would have been stillborn. Only he can fully explain his shortsightedness.
One would expect the APC hierarchy to rise and challenge what their former leader is being made to endure, but alas the sun has lost its scotching power. We now have a one party state. How melancholic. Many thanks to Maxwell for the enlightenment.
Fellow Sierra Leoneans, these are all the reasons why we are always depreciating, declining, everyday since 2007. Political-selfinterest, and triballism led us to many obstacles, by selling the STATE FUND to private sectors. Like the state percentage(25%) owned by the government way back in 2007 from Sierra Rutile which was signed by the government of former president Tejan Kabba. this % has been sold by the former wicked government Ernest Koroma and his collegues.
Thank you brother J. Palmer for having the courage to say this hard truth, and it was posted as needed. The wicked Koroma administration promised to run the country as a business concern, really? that was not fulfilled at all. He came for himself and the party supporters also to renew dictatorship in the country. God won’t forgives him for his broken promises to the entire nation. EBK never apologized to Sierra Leoneans, but only to the APC party members, which shows that, he was an APC party president.
For argument sake taking out the political nuance, Rokel Commercial Bank was loaned $12M It has since turn things around and is making profits for its share holders including the government of sierra leone. The question is question, has the RCB refund the $12M loan that was approved by the former president? Does the former president or any of his closed family has shares at the RCB, and there a direct beneficiary in the banks operation. If the latter is yes, is this the reason the Judges unanimously agreed that the was abused of authority in approving the loan?
EBK MUST PAY BACK OUR STOLEN MONEY
“Fear not the world, but the people “. Indeed we are the world and we are the people. Let us put Sierra Leone first above all else.