Prosecutors and senior investigators of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) have undergone a five-day training at the Hill Valley Hotel in Freetown. Prosecutors of the Sierra Leone Police also benefited from the training.

Giving a background to the training, the Director of the Intelligence, Investigation and Prosecution Department at the ACC, Reginald Fynn, said the training was geared towards assessing the work of the Commission’s prosecution and re-focusing their energy in the fight against corruption. He said the training would help them look at the Anti-Corruption Act 2008 in a more holistic way and find means of aligning their work accordingly.

Commissioner of the ACC, Joseph Fitzgerald Kamara, said prosecution has many fundamentals including the discretion not to prosecute. Mr. Kamara said prosecutors should always use that discretion wisely because of its consequences; while at the same time ensure that justice is dispensed accordingly. He urged the prosecutors not to be influenced by their personal idiosyncrasies and to always be objective, fair and diligent in the execution of their duties. The ACC Commissioner said he was happy that the ACC has helped set some standards in the jurisprudence of the country’s legal system.  

The Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Crime Services, Morie Lengor thanked the ACC for the goodwill extended to their prosecutors to take part in the training. He described the training as very useful as it would help build the capacity of their prosecution team.

Former Vice President of Sierra Leone and one of the facilitators for the training, Solomon Berewa, described corruption as something very tough to fight and urged people engaged in the fight not to expect praises. He therefore encouraged the prosecutors to strengthen their resolve in the fight and always execute their work diligently.Start writing here...