2. Page 2 Page 3 mantle to steer the warship; my team at ACC who understand and bought into the vision of the fight and have stood by me steadfastly; and the people of Sierra Leone for believing that the fight can be won. And this award is dedicated to all three.” With that he held his trophy up high showing it to the people of Sierra Leone, smiled and walked off stage amidst cheers and reverence from all corners of the jam - packed hall. The First Lady of the Republic congratulated him with a warm handshake as he walked back to his seat, and so did many of his compatriots sitting along the way to his seat. He took his seat, handed the trophy to his Deputy and Team, and on it read the immortal inscription “ AWOL NATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS PUBLIC SERVANT OF THE YEAR 2019” . As the Commission’s Public Relations Officer, I couldn’t be prouder and happier watching my hard working Commissioner being honoured with such a coveted award. We still have a lot to do, but achievements like these beckon us to stop for a while and appreciate the people and their support in this fierce fight. This award adds to the multiple awards won in the past 18 months since he became Commissioner of the ACC which is a recognition of his revolutionary and result - oriented leadership and commitment to the cause of con- trolling corruption in Sierra Leone. This award is coveted as it identifies that one public servant from amongst thousands who was voted and agreed to be the best in serving his/her country. Various award categories such as Medical Practitioner of the Year, Correctional Officer of the Year, Ministry of the Year, Banking Institution of the Year, Media Practitioner of the Year etc., were dished out to the winners. When the hosts announced the category of Public Servant of the Year, you could literally cut the air with a knife. Three public nominees in this category, three persons who have worked the work, talked the talk and worked the talk, three persons who have made Sierra Leone proud, three deserving public servants in the persons of Francis Ben Kaifala, Commissioner ACC; Lara Taylor - Pearce, the Auditor - General, Audit Service Sierra Leone; and Ms. Michaela Mackay of Corporate Affairs Commission, were listed in that category. But only one will take home the award. It was a truly competitive category and the public was waiting to hear who would be named winner in that category, who would grab the most anticipated and perhaps, the most important award of the night. The room went quiet again, you could literally see people on the edge of their seats, waiting to celebrate the winner. It was a rousing shout when the announcement “Public Servant of the year 2019 is, Francis...” was made. The rest of the name was drowned by the eruption of cheers, screams of joy, applauses and standing ovation from the audience. Clad in black and white linen outfit, the smiling Commissioner Francis Ben Kaifala stood up, hugged his Deputy, shook the hand of his Director of Admin, embraced his PR team already on standby taking reaction shots; then bowed in reverence and appreciation for the audience around him. And then majestically walked up to the stage with one hand on his chest, to receive his award. One could feel and see joy and a sense of purpose in every step he took. What was going through his mind at that time, we may never know but it could be seen that his heart was overflowing with joy. From the continued bowing and reverence for the audience, it was clear that he was genuinely touched by the show of love he received not only from the audience seated in the hall that night but the countless number of people who voted for him to be Sierra Leone’s “Public Servant of the Year 2019”. “Thank you, thank you everyone.” Echoed across the hall. It was suddenly quiet again as the orator Francis Ben Kaifala started to speak. “ I must say three things made this possible apart from the favor of God: the will of the President to combat corruption and him giving me the Commissioner Francis Ben Kaifala Esq. and some staff of the ACC after receiving the AWOL Award T he Anti - Corruption Commission (ACC) on Wednesday 12 th February, 2020, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Assets and Government Property Commission (NAGPC) at its 3 Gloucester Street Office in Freetown. The MoU outlines commitment to joint - engagement and partnership between the two institutions. The move is geared towards facilitating the smooth accomplishment of the mandates of the two institutions in ensuring the best use, monitoring, management and disposal of properties and assets of the Government of Sierra Leone and foster cooperation and collaboration between the two institutions. In his statement, Deputy Commissioner of ACC, Augustine Foday - Ngobie, expressed his appreciation for the efforts of public institutions in forging a workable relationship with the ACC. He said that the mandate of the ACC is to provide leadership in the fight against corruption.“The ACC is ready to work with any institution in the fight against corruption,” the ACC Deputy Commissioner said. Mr. Ngobie described the signing ceremony as another milestone for the two institutions. He said that the ACC has been protecting and recovering government properties, noting that in 2019 the Commission recovered a hotel building which was handed over to the Government. “He said the Commission appreciates the partnership, hoping that the two institutions will stand out and work for the good of Sierra Leone. The Commissioner of NAGPC Abu Hindolo Moseray said his institution has a mandate to establish a National Assets Register, to make provision for the control and identification of all national assets and Government’s property, to provide for the maintenance and improvement of such property and the monitoring of their use or disposal. He said however that the Act that establishes the Commission does not make provision for punitive measures to be taken against defaulters. He said the MoU with the ACC is important because they (the ACC) have the powers to prosecute persons who misuse or misappropriate Government assets and property. Deputy Commissioner of ACC Augustine Foday - Ngobie and Commissioner of National Assets and Property Commission Abu Hindolo Moseray (sandwiched by staff of the two institutions) displaying the signed MoU.

1. MEET THE TEAM EDITOR - IN - CHIEF Abubakar Turay EDITORS Margaret Murray Moris Ibrahim Kanteh LAYOUT & GRAPHICS Philippa M Davies EDITORIAL ADVISERS Patrick Sandi Emmanuel Koivaya Amara Alhassan Kargbo INSIDE THIS ISSUE pg Awol „s Public Servant of the year 2019 1 ACC signs MOU with Assets Commission 2 ACC strengthens Accountability Measures for School Buses in Bo 4 March 2020 THE ANTI - CORRUPTION COMMISSION E very December, hundreds of people - high level government officials, ordinary Sierra Leoneans and diplomats from different works of life gather to witness the celebration of Sierra Leoneans who in the past year have excelled in their various works of life in the form of an awards night. Last year’s event was held at the Bintumani Conference Centre on the 29 th December 2019. The All Works of Life’s (AWOL) National Achievement Awards, is geared towards showcasing and honoring women and men who have proven beyond doubt, commitment, discipline and result in their work ethics; and demonstrated excellence and/or leadership qualities within the institutions in which they work. The hall reflected the National flag – green, white and blue; with soft music playing in the background. At the entrance, ushers welcomed the huge flow of crowd, friends and acquaintances caught up and had warm chats along the corridors, and new acquaintances being introduced by and to mutual friends. As the programme itself was called to order, lights were deemed, hosts took respective positions on stage, guests, awardees and perform- ers rushed to take their seats. The back- ground music went low, and an ambiance - filled sobriety filled the well decorated room. As per tradition, everyone was asked to stand up as live and beautiful rendition of the National Anthem echoed through the hall; thereafter, the hosts welcomed everyone to another year’s end of celebration of excellence and service to country with glitz and glamour. In attendance were the First Lady of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Mad- am Fatima Maada Bio; The Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner of the Anti - Corruption Commission, Francis Ben Kaifala Esq and Mr. Augustine Foday Ngobie, respectively; the Minister of Tourism and Culture; and a host of dignitaries including diplomats, philanthropists, and sitting government officials. Thirty - seven (37) categories of awards were set to be given out - among them, the prestigious Public Servant of the Year 2019 Award – celebrating excellence in the service of the State as a public official. Contd. pg3 Commissioner Francis Ben Kaifala Esq. whilst receiving the AWOL Award for Public Servant of the Year 20 19 Volume 3 Issue 3 By Margaret Murray Public Relations Officer “ Recognition of function always precedes recognition of being” by Rita Mae Brown “Awards and ceremonies are an applause of discipline” by Sunday Adelaja I n a bid to ensure accountability in the use and management of public resources, a team of three from the Anti - Corruption Commission (ACC) South, on Wednesday 5 th February 2020, engaged the Chief Administrator of the Bo City Council on the use and management of the five school buses assigned to the City by Government for school pupils. The engagement took place at the Bo City Council with the Chief Administrator, Edward Alpha, the School Bus Coordinator, Haja Halima Lukay and the Finance Officer Abubakarr Daboh in attendance. The Manager of the Southern Regional Office of the ACC, Musa Bala Jawara, said the move by the ACC team was necessitated by intelligence received from the public that bus drivers were misusing fuel and not properly accounting for revenue generated on a daily basis; indicating that such will undermine the Free Quality Education programme of the Government, if left unchecked. Mr. Jawara said that pursuant to Section 7(g) of the Anti - Corruption Act, 2008, it was the responsibility of the Commission to ensure that public resources are used in an accountable and transparent manner to enhance effective service delivery. He concluded that the inquiry into the use and management of school buses was not an investigation but a preventive process to enhance and strengthen accountability in the use and management of public resources. Encapsulating on the general operations of the buses, the Bus Coordinator said that since they received the buses from the Central Government on 10 th September 2019, each of the 46 - capacity buses was assigned one monitor. Haja Lukay said that the buses generated between One Million Five Hundred Thousand Leo- nes to Two Million Leones daily; but that such amount, when collected at the end of the month, was used to buy fuel and initially pay nine drivers who were recruited by the Central Government. She concluded that de- spite few challenges in the running of the buses the Bo City Council hopes to make savings this year with a possibility of buying an additional bus. Senior Investigation Officer Belinda Hebron said transparency and accountability were key elements in the fight against corruption. The Team requested for documents in respect of fuel and revenue of the buses for examination to evaluate and review best practices that will ensure effective service delivery. ACC Southern Region Manager Musa B. Jawara addressing staff of the Bo City Council