The General Manager of Guoji Investment at Cline Town Mr Jack Wang has intimated that he is very disappointed with the quit notice that the government of Sierra Leone has given them after they have worked so hard to develop the place since 2003.

He said in 2003, they signed a contract with the then Minister of Trade Dr Kadie Sesay for the development of compound, which they did by providing land, buildings and preferential concessions.

“In 2011, we had another contract signed with the then Minister and that contract gave us 50 years lease agreement to work in that place. Presently we have 13 companies working in the compound with around 100 Sierra Leoneans working in these factories. So it was wrong for people to say since 2003 when we started operations we have done nothing.”

He said many well meaning companies came in from various sides of the globe and the joint venture has been very instrumental in producing some building materials and some other items from the other companies that are in the Sierra Leone market.

However, the Management of Sierra Leone Guoji investment were dismayed to receive letters from the Minister of Trade and Industry to nullify the said agreement on the pretext that much has not been done as expected in terms of performance on the side of the Chinese group which is not completely correct.

It should be noted that there is a long standing diplomatic and economic relationship between the Republic of Sierra Leone and the Peoples Republic of China, and the fact that the Ministry of Trade and Industry is accusing Guoji of not being honest and did not accomplish some of their goals is far from the truth.

“We have spent over $10million since 2003 and we have been paying dividend to government annually, and that was the reason why in 2011 we had the lease signed for 50 years. If the ministry is bent on bringing another company into the compound we have no reason not to accept, but they should make sure that we have a long lease and we must be in control of the compound or at least the big portion based on shares.

According to staff of Guoji Investment, the Ministry did not only stop at the wrongful termination of the agreement, but have gone ahead on several occasions, especially on the 7th of January, 2021, to demarcate certain portions of the Guoji compound at Cline Town and allocated them to Jolaks investment an Indian business group that have already occupied and fenced some demarcated areas at the National Workshop Compound and roughly only 20% of the complex was left with Guoji company which is unacceptable to Guoji company.

The company’s legal solicitor Adewale Showers Esq., of Chidera Chambers has taken up the matter legally on behalf of Henan Guoji Company and wrote a letter to the Minister of Trade on the 4th January 2021, informing them about their illegal actions against their clients and intention to seek legal redress pursuant to Article 40 of the Joint Venture Agreement and Article 3.2 of the Lease Agreement of 18th Feb 2012. and he also mentioned if there is any dispute, the disputes in question shall be submitted for arbitration according to the agreement which Guoji company wrote to the Ministry of Trade but no reply afterwards.

Mr Jack Wang averred that most of the companies working in the compound have stopped production because of the threat hanging over them and they have nowhere to report only to their lawyers and Chinese Embassy who are helping them.

“We are appealing to the authorities not to take such an advantage on us as we have been making sure that we follow the laws of the land and fulfilling our obligations to the state. We also want justice and save us from the share advantage the Ministry of Trade has inflicted on us.”

At the compound most of the Sierra Leonean workers are dejected and they are not happy as they say they are about to lose their jobs they have secured years ago. They called on the government to see reason to do the right thing as Guoji Investment has done so much in that compound by upgrading it and bringing many companies that have been serving the people of Sierra Leone.

See letter from the Lawyers