By Abdulai kargbo
The Minister of Works and Public Assets of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Dr. Dennis Sandy, has said that the report submitted by the China Railway Seventh Group (CRSG), as instructed by parliament, has shown that nine million eight hundred and four thousand three hundred and sixty-five (9,804,365) vehicles plied the Wellington-Masiaka toll highway in 2023.
The Minister made this statement during the stakeholder's engagement organized by parliament on Tuesday 26th of February 2023, to find a way forward to the impasse between the China Railway Seventh Group C.R.S.G. and the republic over the proposed increase of the toll charges of the Wellington Masiaka highway which, according to the Minister, Dr. Sandy, should take effect on march 1st this year.
During the past few weeks, the public spheres of Sierra Leone have been occupied by debates tilted to quantifying the possibilities of toll increase charges, their application, and their implications on the lives of the ordinary Sierra Leoneans, who solely rely on produce that is transited through the toll route. This meeting, owing to its importance, attracted the attention and presence of stakeholders concerned about the project and the public, who graced it through several mediums. Chaired by the speaker of the sixth parliament, Dr Chernor Abass Bundu, and moderated by the Leader of Government of Business, Hon. Mathew Sahr Nyuma, the president of the drivers union, some NGOs who have been vociferous over this proposal, like the native consortium, was also present during this engagement.
At the commencement of this meeting, the speaker stated that the engagement would be based on some elements, which are the review, the conditions stated, and the basis of the review, urging all the parties to have neutral minds during the discussion. During his presentation, the Deputy General Manager of CRSG, Mr. Bingo, stated their justification for the increment, in which he emphasized the exchange rate and the fuel cost. The Honorable Speaker, Dr. Abass Bundu, raised a concern that in the presentation of Mr. Bingo, much emphasis was not laid on the traffic base date, which is a condition for toll charges increment in clause 10.4 in the contract agreement.
Mr speaker asked whether such a document had been submitted to the concessionaire (the government) as stated in the agreement before any possible increase consideration. Mr Bingo replied, "they have been submitting and have submitted to the Sierra Leone Road Authority SLRSA. The speaker then asked the SLRSA representative whether such a claim by the general manager of CRSG was corrected. The Director General of the SLRA, ing Jalil Momodu, stated that they have not received comprehensive reports from the CRSG over the years and that they had informed the CRSG to work with personnel from the SLRA to upgrade the reports. Still, all efforts have not been successful, according to Edmond Abu. A civil society activist is a breach of clause 16(1,2,3 and 4) of the agreement. His position is that the proposal is untimely and unnecessary when the people are suffering from economic hardship, urging parliament to stall the implementation of the new toll charges. In the presentation of the president of the Motor Drivers Union, Alpha Amadu Bah, their membership has a problem with the new toll charges, especially category five (5), which talks about seven hundred leones for ten tire vehicles. He believes that category should be appropriately looked into and segments machine career ten tire vehicles from foods stuff career vehicles. Because of this statement, he was instructed by the Hon. speaker to consult with his membership and present a document that reflects the will of their membership to the speaker’s office before Thursday. Based on the conclusion of the meeting, this engagement will continue in the well on Thursday, March 1st. And that means that the proposal of the CRSG won’t come into effect on the 1st, as stated by the minister.
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