Sacking of Army Chief – A Political Undercurrent

The recent sacking of the Army Chief of Defense Staff, Major General Nelson Williams, has created doubts in the minds of senior as well as junior army officers, referring to the sacking as having ‘deep political undercurrents.’

Though efforts to reach Nelson Williams for comment proved futile, sources convincing to Sierra Express News say the sacked Army Chief is yet to reach his retirement age and has been a better choice than the now appointed CDS.

That Nelson Williams is far younger than the newly appointed Army Chief Major General R.Y Koroma is an incontestable fact.

Investigation also revealed how the sacked CDS was schooled at the Bo Secondary School, a close friend to SLPP John Oponjo Benjamin, and one the ruling APC believes is a staunched underground politician.

Although reasons for the sacking of Nelson Williams was untold, sources say he was seen as ‘supporter of the SLPP’ and has no forethought of legitimate interest for the ruling APC.

Military officers, who spoke to this press on grounds of confidentiality, measure the out-gone Army Chief, as ‘first-class enough’ and ‘capable’ of making good an Army that was almost abandoned by its people.

It has reached the desk of Sierra Express Media  that the newly appointed Army Chief, Major General R.Y Koroma, is in the list of Army officers to proceed on terminal leave (retirement) in December of 2010.

Public opinion has also questioned the serialized and spontaneous dismissals of the head of police – Acha Kamara, and the head of Army, Nelson Williams.

Findings say the sequential sacking of both the police IG and Army CDS is of concern and raises suspicion of threat to national security; a thing civil society wants clear talk on.

Of course, junior officers of the military say “The Army, under sacked Nelson Williams, was acclaimed, fit and competent for international missions.”

By the aforementioned, a body of officers on international peace mission to Darfur/Sudan, a week ago, returned to Sierra Leone after completion of a successful U.N peace duty.

By Ibrahim Samura

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