The First Prosecution Witness and Chief Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Investigator, Joseph Bockarie Noah who is being cross examined in the ongoing ACC trial of Dr Samura Mathew Wilson Kamara and five others, has yesterday Thursday 17 March told the court that Samura Kamara’s name is not written on the financial transfer documents.
Noah conceded to this fact during cross examination by one of Ssmura Kamara’s defence counsels, lawyer Ady Macauley. The defence counsel had gone through series of correspondences from the Director General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Corporation, Ministry of Finance, Director of Banking, Bank of Sierra Leone and the Accountant General’s Department, all which confirmed the transfer of cash from BSL to the account of the Sierra Leone Permanent Mission in New York for the refurbishment of the chancery building but none has Samura Kamara’s name on it.
Macauley therefore put it to PW1 that based on correspondences referenced so far, Samura Kamara was never involved in the transfer of any money whatsoever.
The Defence further submitted exhibit marked AZ 122 which the prosecution witness confirmed in court to be a reference to the Two Million United States Dollars allocated in 2015 to the Government of Sierra Leone by the Government of the Peoples Republic of China for the refurbishment of Sierra Leone’s chancery building in New York. PWI also confirmed that bank statements showed that the money was indeed transferred to the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
He also referenced page 18 of exhibit H which is a letter – correspondence from the Director Market Banking Department, Bank of Sierra Leone confirming transfer with the bank’s receipt of the said amount of money from the Government of the People’s Republic of China.
Added to correspondences referenced by lawyer Macauley, was a Memorandum of Understanding from the Accountant General’s to the Director General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Corporation that clearly spelt out the purpose of the money, adding that another letter from the aforementioned DG of the Foreign Ministry also clearly indicated the exact purpose of the money.
He noted that exhibit H25 further referenced correspondences between Ministry of Finance, Bank of Sierra Leone and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Corporation. Lawyer Macauley therefore put it to the AC CPW1 that based on documents referenced so far the Two Million United States Dollars from the Government of the Peoples Republic of China was actually deposited into the Bank of Sierra Leone.
According to the Defence Counsel, the second part of the cross examination established that through out Smura Kamura’s tenure on to the time he left, the said Two Million Dollars was safely in the custody of the Central Bank.
Meanwhile, several exhibits tendered in court during the course of this trial have over and again showed that between 2018 and 2019, Alie Kabba, in his capacity as Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation deposited about Two Million Dollars of Chinese aid into his private bank account. Yet it is Samura Kamara, who was no longer at the foreign ministry who is standing whilst Alie Kabba is roaming around campaigning for the ruling Sierra Leones Peoples Party.
The matter was adjourned to 24 March and bail continues for all accused
