The Real News

*AS MP WITHHOLDS DOPORTEE PROJECTS...MEMBERS FAIL TO GIVE ACCOUNT*
By:Alimamy Jalloh

In August, 2020,a community Base Organisation known as 'Doportee' having its members both home and abroad, proposed to construct a three projects ,Toilet facility,Stores and Bakery as a way to augment or give back to the Portee community as it Motto interpretes,and also to restore the unmanageable and the visibility needs of the people especially for women who sell in the Portee Market and its environs.
Based on that areas of significance for the community people and the market committee members,this year 2021,Doportee ,some initial proposals of its projects commenced. As it started,some stakeholders including the Honourable of Constituency 116,raised few accountability concerns about the roadmap of the projects and how it would benefit the community people transparently with accountability and sustainability. Because of this default on the projects,the Honourable of Constituency 116,Emmanuel Sahr Gbeke, suspended the Organisation,Doportee projects because the organisation failed to account for its projects and bring to him a 'Concept Note' in order to ascertain according to him,what constitute the way forward of the projects for the people in his constituency,East of Freetown.
Responding to these challenges of the Organisation,the Councillor of Ward 409,Fatmata Cecilia Williams in the Portee community said Doportee as an organisation, informed her in 2020,about the intending projects of the toilet facility,stores and its proposed bakery for the community based on what she was told by the organisation's members. She further explained that she has already started her 2019 ,proposed toilet facility projects in the same location of Doportee project site, but ,since they have come to do the project for the community,I give my support to them. She continued..."Gbashe,the market committee chairman,at one point in time,told me that,since, I have no finance for now, for my intending proposed toilets project,it is better to let my projects for Doportee to take over,because they said ,according to what Gbashe informed me, that 150 million Leones has been the proposed budget for the projects developments".
As a result of the proposed projects of Doportee,among stakeholders,market women,the market committee ,(8) eight market women stales(tables)were destroyed. Close to eight(8)hundred cements blocks for the proposed infrastructural projects were stolen by some members unidentified conmmunity members and only few quantity now remained including the sand that was bought for the project also stolen.
Speaking to the Chairlady, Isatu ,of the Portee market, disclosed that,initially when they informed them about the Doportee projects,they were called upon and informed by the organisation and various stakeholders in three consecutive meetings.
She noted that because of her effort to enhance the development processes..."I was seriously accused that, I and other stakeholders of the community, have decided to sell the proposed site for the land projects to a businessman.Bot, me ar nor say,ar nor sell land,mi hand clean,mi heart clean, ar nor sell. For the project,she noted that,Doportee informed them in the Market, that the toilet facility would be built for them especially for the women ,because the market has no toliet facility. Most women in the market prefer going to the Mosque closer to the market to rescue themselves and it sometimes embarrassing. These challenges according to her,endangers the health with different kinds of diseases such as malaria(Mosquitoes),fever, of community members such as women,children and other market women who came far away to sell their commodities(goods).
The Project Manager of Doportee,Alhaji Osman Turay, in his respond to their proposed project,maintained that..."As an organisation, we intend to construct a multi-purpose building of toilet facilities,stores and bakery in the Portee market ground.First of all,we came with the projects to help the community and market people because they have no facilities such as toilet,storage(stores) and for at least employment for the youths in the community.The bakery when constructed would be able to employ 10 or 15 youths approximately in the community" affirmed the Project Manager of Doportee.
Because of the series of processes and consultations made for the said projects,Manager Osman Turay disclosed..."the Honourable Gbeke withheld the projects noting that a conflict of interest in the market has erupted, because there was no memorandum of understanding".He added that,due to this development ,few months ago,the Honourable, later spoke to them that, they should develop a 'Memo or Concept note' and submit it to the Portee Corona Response Unit,in order to show who will construct the toilet,stores and bakery and the beneficiaries to the said projects;Who will also control the projects;Is it a profit base or non-profit and what percentage?When the Project Manager was asked about the total cost of the projects he said..."we were thinking of 150 million Leones.I could not disclose now what we have at this moment!Moni nor lidon et,say na dis don de"
Because of accountability and transparency,a Right to Access Imformation Letter was submitted to Doportee Organisation for a period of 15 working days to reply,says RAI Act of Sierra Leone, on 6th March,2021 ,to disclose their total budget cost of the projects countributed both home and abroad members,and how many each contributed for said project,but they failed to account for the expenses of the project for the community proposed in 2020.An effort was also done to reach, the finance mobilizer Kemoh,internationally /abroad , but also refused to account for the project for transparency and accountability.According to stakeholders in the community such as Paramount Chief Sufian Komrabai Bangura ,said Doportee ,in four meetings held in 2021, had never disclosed to him,the total cost of the projects proposed.
As Alhaji Osman Turay disclosed that ,the project goes with pre financing.From a reliable sources in the Doportee organisation in the community,it was noted that sixty million Leones in 2021,after few months, was procured for the projects in written document form not shown to the Public but printed. The current expenditure expenses during that period was expended for the projects for cements,cement blocks,purchasing of sand among few sum-up to the total of twenty-four(24)million Leones.
Expressing his disastisfactions about the projects, the Honourable of Constituency 116,East of Freetown, Sahr Gbeke maintained..."Members of the organisation said they have three different stakeholders meetings in in the community in which I was not invited. During the night ,in the market place,sellers stales were broken and nobody told me in the community that Doportee wanted to bring development or not".Honourable Gbeke further noted that,during the clashed among youths including other market women in the market, later he received a telephone call by Chief Sufian Komrabai Bangura,that conflict has occured and what to do next!Honourable Gbeke further said that..."I told the organisation that they should put on hold on all their projects and to do a proper co-ordination with the community,if they have a better results they should bring it.But if not,I will never accept until the condition is fulfill. 'Go and build a concept note"Gbeke asserted on the project.
During the cold war and physical conflict,few stakeholders and institutions, outside the community, were consulted ,such as the Kissy Police Division,east of Freetown were Doportee projects was put on hold,Mohamed Kamara(Med-K),Freetown City Council(FCC)Mayor,Porcda among few.
Since Doportee project was withheld by the Honourable and the Councillor of ward 409,no further developments has yet been undertaken to the said projects,after few months ago. While the current Councillior ,Fatmata Cecilia Williams of ward 409,in a recent meeting held at SLMB Primary school,she affirmed that, her toilet facility project which she proposed in 2019,would soon be commenced in the same site of the Doportee projects. "Last year ,2020 ,I pledged 500,000 thousand Leones to begin my community market project".

*AS IMFECHS-S/LEONE DIES IN COMMA...STAKEHOLDERS EXPRESS DISASTISFACTIONS ON CEO*
By:Alimamy Jalloh

The Infinity Mind Foundation Educational College of Health Sciences was established in 2017,initially,as non-profit medical college,geared towards helping community residents,among few,was the Portee community.The institution on the hand was also established in assisting pupils and students by providing them the requisite skills and knowledge and medical back-up, in order to promote health Education in the country and the community as well.
The medical institution after few months of preparations, started its operation and was launched on Saturday 24th March,2018 without been properly registered at the Tertiary Education Commission(TEC) in the country.But in late 2019,after the medical institution known as IMFECE-SL located in the Waterloo community,5-5 axis,a fact checking was done at TEC to actually ascertain the legality of the documentations of the institution.The staff I met in the year 2020,is a female,who then confirmed to me by showing me the file of the institution, and further disclosed that, IMFECE-SL has already completed its processes. She continued that the only task left, was to verify and to do visibility assessment to IMFECE-SL institution, in order to also verify their input in the content document ,if all are in place.
As IMFECE-SL now transformed to another name called Infinity Mind Foundation of Social Sciences and Clinical services,which was later moved from the Portee community,east of Freetown, to the Waterloo community,Western Rural areas of Freetown, many stakeholders including students living in the comnunity,were seriously aggrieved about the CEO,Dr. Rebecca M. Taylor's dicision for putting the Cat before the Horse.
Because of this some students and other teachers said it was as result of the conflict of interest between the CEO and the Public Relations Officer who also doubles as the outreach Coordinator,John Smith and other staff in the medical institution during that period which sounds dictatorial,stipend only given to her staffs which she assumed to voluntary by then for the community with no train and qualify lecturers. Contacting the institution lecturers,some reserved their views and others vent their own side of the story.
In the year 2020,the Landlord,Mr. Kamara, where, initially, the institution, IMFECE-SL was located for students learning programmes, was in rentage,rented by Dr. Rebecca M. Taylor from the Landlord,Mr. Kamara in the Portee community few years ago,orally ,at an initial cost 25 Million Leones agreed upon. But ,the institution, only paid 13 Million Leones ,and Dr. Taylor later promised to pay the balance ,according the Landlord,she did not pay the balance and leaved the resident without informing him,since then no balance of payment.
The institution over the years ,however,had been partnering with the Ministry of Social Welfare and other humanitarian organisations for mobilisation and campaigns in the provincial areas ,where Radio talk shows and programnes were undertaken.But, yet still ,it structures of establishment in terms of conducive, reliable and paid lecturers,trained and qualify lecturers who can deliver well,conflict of interest are serious concerns raised against the CEO ,Dr. Rebecca M. Taylor of its former institution in most communities in the country. One among those concerns was that,initially, students paid minimum tution fees.But now,2019 to 2020, Students pay more against their will.
Undertaken this investigation ,since 2019,after the institution has already transferred to Waterloo community,on 6th March,2021,the Right to Access Imformation Letter was forwarded to Dr. Rebecca M. Taylor online, in the United States to respond to those allegations levied against her former institution,IMFECE-SL which now transformed to Infinity Mind Foundation of Social Sciences and Clinical Services.According to the RAI Act in Sierra Leone,Dr.Taylor was given 15 working days,and even above to respond to those allegations, but she did not reply.
Based on research undertaken recently,the 'Infinity Mind',has been used by various medical scholars and other institutions normally especially in Asia,which is transcribed ,to actually fit in ,their aim and desire of their establishment. Its initially motto:'University Preparation' adding 'Educational Centre for Excellence' in collaboration with the M&B Hospital in the East of Freetown according ,to many has failed communities in the country.