The Chairperson for House of Jesus Disable organization, Cherlous S. M. Koroma, has said that two acres of land situated at the back of the Waterloo Correctional Centre, Waterloo, belonging to person with disabilities has been allegedly grabbed by one Habib Thorpe who is serving as Sierra Leone People’s Party Chairperson in Waterloo, Western Rural Area.
The land was given to persons with disabilities by the Ministry of Lands in settlement over another disputed plot of land.
He added that a week after the said grabbing, they reported the matter to the Minister of Lands Dr. Dennis Sandy, who advised them to take photos and video-clip as evidence.
He said that the Minister scheduled a first meeting and when Thorpe was confronted with the matter, and he (Thorpe) responded that he would not be able to evict those to whom he had sold the land because they are SLPP supporters. He added that after this meeting nothing was done by the Ministry of Lands to ensure that they get back the land. He furthered that in another meeting to settle the matter at the Anti-Corruption Commission, on the scheduled date Habib Thorpe did not show for the meeting.
Koroma added after this, on the advice of officials at the ACC, he reported the matter at the Anti-Land Grabbing unit, Ross Road Police Division who later referred the letter to the Criminal Investigation Department.
He told Premier News that after their land had been grabbed they no longer enjoy conducive accommodation and has caused them to cluster in a small land owned by SLRTC at Wilberforce Street in Freetown on which they are squatters. He said that they had been using the land belonging to Sierra Leone Road Transportation Corporation (SLRTC) in the year 2007 residing in makeshift structures.
He explained that in 2012, their makeshift structures were demolished to compel them to vacate the said property, but they had nowhere to live, so they stubbornly refused to give up the said property. He said that months later they congregated and built new structures on the property.
Koroma noted that because of their looming accommodation issues, they decided to apply to the Ministry of Lands for the acquisition of state land, and they were given a plot of land in Grafton. He said that the rugged shape of the land and their disabilities prevented them from accepting the location, because the place was not accessible and was too far from the highway which is contrary to the provisions of the Disability Act of 2011.
He cited that they wrote a letter to the Ministry of Lands complaining about the mountainous location of the given property, the ministry in their response apportioned another land to them at Masorie back of United Methodist church. He said the church later claimed to be the rightful owner of the property.
Koroma said that, it was as a result of this that the Lands Ministry apportioned the said two acres of land to them.
By Theressa Taylor
14/01/2021. ISSUE NO:7980