BULLSEYE! THIS IS HOW I WILL DESCRIBE THE APPOINTMENT OF TEJAN AHMED ISRAEL JAH ESQ. TO SERVE AS THE OMBUDSMAN:

Siraju Bah

The President has made several brilliant appointments at the start of 2024 but the one that caught my eye the most is the appointment of the Ombudsman. Knowing the personality who has been ticked for the position, I trust that a lot of incredible reforms are going to be made. I worked closely with Tejan Ahmed Israel Jah at the RAIC where he was serving as the Legal Adviser and knowing full well his disposition at work, I can convenient vouch that he has the energy and enthusiasm to deliver.  Sometimes, it is not just about the energy, but the competence and qualifications to do the work. When appointees are well cut-out for the jobs they are hired to do, it become easy to deliver. Israel Jah Esq. has the requisite academic qualification and expertise and has served in various institutions both in the public and private sector.  

Tejan Ahmed Israel Jah is a Barrister and Solicitor of the   High Court of Sierra Leone who was called to the Sierra Leone Bar in 2009. He started his career as a lawyer in the Law Firm of Shears Moses and Co. and then proceeded to the Law Firm of Marcus Jones & Co.,  He later on served as a Magistrate in the Judiciary and was assigned to preside over matters/cases in Freetown, Waterloo and York Judicial Districts.

He has wealth of experience in both private and corporate practice including holding Management and other administrative positions in some Government Departments and Agencies. He served as Legal officer at the Right to Access Information Commission, Legal Advisor and Corporate Secretary at the Electricity and Distribution Authority (EDSA) and recently as the Acting Director of Legal Affairs and  Board Secretariat at NASSIT.

 Whilst in private practice, he worked inter alia, as Duty/ defence counsel for Advocaid and Defence for Children International – DCI- SL,  NGOs that provide legal services including court representations for indigent women, girls and children/juveniles in contact or conflict with the law, respectively.

He has served and/or serving as lecturer/ tutor in law at the University of Makeni ( Unimak), IPAM and Njala University to name a few.

As a member of the Sierra Leone Bar Association, he has been elected on numerous occasions as one of its directors in the capacities as Assistant General Secretary and Publicity Secretary.

He was recently elected by the membership of the S/L Bar Association as a council member on the General Legal Council (GLC) , the body that regulates the Legal Profession in the Country.

He has been appointed as a Notary Public.

He holds a honours Law Degree (LL.B) from Fourah Bay College, an utter Bar from the S/L Law School, an Executive Master in Business Administration (MBA) Degree from IPAM and a Master in Law (LL.M) Degree from the University of Salford in the United Kingdom.