As ACC slams 7 charges… Momoh plans to pursue Aljazeera
The Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) boss, Joseph Fitzgerald Kamara, has handed seven count charges to Momoh Konte and Alex Mansaray, both businessmen accused of having bearings with the ‘timbergate’ Aljazeera documentary broadcast on its program: Africa Investigates Corruption. Four count charges of soliciting an advantage contrary to Section 35 (1), count of Peddling Influence, contrary to Section 31(3), and two (2) counts of conspiracy to commit corruption offences, contrary to Section 128 of the Anti Corruption Act No. 12 of 2008.
The charges came late in the evening of Monday in a press briefing held at the ACC Cathedral House office at Gloucester Street, Freetown.
The Commission said the available evidence before them does not meet the required evidential threshold for criminal prosecution against the Vice President, Alhaji Samuel Sam Sumana and the Paramount Chief, Kandeh Finoh III of Gbendebu N’gowahun, Bombali District.
One week ago, the ACC received what it referred to as an uncut edition of the documentary and its transcript. These materials came to supplement the documentary footage which is the subject of corruption probing the ACC is carrying out on individuals suspected to have been involved in enhancing the registration of a business company purported to be carrying out a timber logging deal.
Momoh Konte and Alex Mansaray are spotted in the documentary soliciting an advantage to enhance the deal, but the credibility of the make up of such footage is under challenge.
Aspersions are being cast as questions necked the relevance and synergy existing between the ACC’s lines of investigation and that of the Aljazeera TV network on the basis that the source of information evidenced in the documentary clip is flawed with ingenuity as far as originality of proof is concerned. For example there was strange line in the inter-sceneries which transformed Momoh Konte’s office to that of the Vice President and the voice over relayed that the corruption deal takes places in the office of the Vice President.
On the other hand the question of soliciting an advantage to facilitate the registration of a business entity came with mixed understanding as well. Sorious Samura said he paid the sum of US$2,000 to enhance business registration and not as a bribe to the individuals involved. All of these in the documentary were led to the highest office of the Vice President. This line of narration is being challenged that nothing of the sort occurred.
In a telephone interview with Momoh Konte, he said he has an issue with the Aljazeera TV network in court wherein the TV network is going to be forced to substantiate their claims in their indecent blackmail against his personality.
He said he never trusted Sorious Samura’s handpicking job of a documentary of which the television has vowed to standby. Konte made three analytical points in suspect that the ACC deals with and relies solely on the evidence the Aljazeera TV network handed them to which his basis of argument clears that the ACC are one sided in their fact findings.
Second, he stated, the ACCs indictment charges came as exact with the proffered charges the Aljazeera TV Network dictated. And that last week Thursday, the Aljazeera TV network told the ACC to lay the case behind just the two suspects, which all of a sudden it came to pass on Monday.
Without trying the legality claims and credibility of Sorious and the Aljazeera TV network the ACC end up exonerating Sorious Samura and the TV network without a thorough analysis of the documentary evidence available.
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