Politics
All You need to Know about Sierra-Leone newly sworn-in President, Julius Madaa Bio
On Wednesday, 4th of April, 2018, the country of Sierra-Leone witnessed a change in power when Former Military leader, Juliun Madaa assumed office as the President of the country.
Representing the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), Bio won 51.81 per cent of votes cast in the March 31 poll, according to results announced by the National Electoral Commission (NEC) on Wednesday.
He defeated former foreign affairs minister and ruling All People’s Congress (APC) candidate Samura Kamara, who had held a slight lead based on partial results earlier in the day but in the end garnered 48.19 per cent.
Sahara weekly with it’s inquisitive quality did a background check up on the new President and found some information you all need to know
HIS BACKGROUND
Julius Maada Bio was born on 12 May 1964, in Tihun, a village in the Sogbini Chiefdom, Bonthe District, just outside the main commercial town of Mattru Jong, in the Southern Province of Sierra Leone. Bio is the 33 of 35 children born to Sherbro Paramount Chief Charlie Bio II of Sogbini Chiefdom. Bio’s father had nine wives. Bio is named after his paternal grandfather, who was also a paramount chief of Sogbini Chiefdom. Bio is an ethnic Sherbro and a practicing Roman Catholic.[5]
Bio began his primary education at the Roman Catholic Primary School in Tihun, Bonthe District. After finishing his early years in primary school, Bio was sent to the town of Pujehun to live with his older sister Agnes, who was a primary school teacher in Pujehun. Bio completed his primary education at the Holy Family Primary School in Pujehun. At the completion of his primary education, Bio’s older sister, Agnes, enrolled him at the Bo Government Secondary School in Bo (commonly known as Bo School), a prominent boarding school. Bio spent seven years at Bo School, rising to become school Prefect. Bio graduated from Bo School in 1984 with A-level at age 20.[5]
Political career
Bio officially became a member of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) in 2005. That same year, Bio sought the leadership of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) at its national convention in Makeni on 3 to 4 September 2005; he took third place, with 33 votes, behind Vice President Solomon Berewa, who received 291 votes, and Charles Margai, who won 34 votes. J.B. Dauda polled 28 votes.[8]
On the night of 31 July 2011, Julius Maada Bio won the election to become the SLPP’s 2012 presidential candidate at the SLPP convention, which was held at the Youyi Building in the heart of Freetown. In the national election, he faced off with President Ernest Bai Koroma of the ruling APC and was defeated, winning 37% of the vote, but established the SLPP as the only viable opposition party in Sierra Leone.[9]
Julius Maada Bio was elected President of Sierra Leone in a run-off election held 31 March 2018. He scored 51.8 percent of the votes according to official results from Sierra Leone’s National Elections Commission. He succeeded Ernest Bai Koroma of the APC who had been President since 2007.
Personal life
Maada Bio is an ethnic Sherbro and a practicing Roman Catholic Christian. Bio’s wife, Fatima Bio is a practicing Muslim and a Gambian national, though she grew up in Kono Districtin Sierra Leone; and her mother was born in Kono District, Sierra Leone and her father is a Gambian native. Bio and Fatima were married in 2013 in London in an interfaith wedding ceremony that was held in a Church and a Mosque prayer services in London. The couple have one child together that was born in London. Bio has three children, all three born in the United States from a previous marriage
Participation in 1992 military coup
On April 29, 1992, Bio was one of a group of young Sierra Leonean soldiers including Captain Valentine Strasser, Lieutenant Sahr Sandy, Lieutenant Solomon Musa, Lieutenant Tom Nyuma and Captain Komba Mondeh that toppled president Joseph Saidu Momohs All People’s Congress (APC) government in a bloodless military coup. The young soldiers formed the National Provisional Ruling Council (NPRC) with Strasser as their leader and Head of State of Sierra Leone.[5]
Bio’s first appointment following the formation of the NPRC was as the Secretary of State South, stationed in the country’s second capital Bo. He was later moved to Freetown to serve as Secretary of State in charge of Information and Broadcasting. At this point, he was promoted to Captain alongside other junior lieutenants. As a leading member of the coup that kicked out the APC government, Bio served as Supreme Council of State member throughout the NPRC’s stay in power and when Strasser’s deputy, captain S.A.J. Musa, was sacked and exiled to the UK, Bio was appointed to the position of Deputy Chairman of the NPRC.[5]
1996 military coupOn January 16, 1996, Bio led a military coup, ousting Captain Valentine Strasser, following a dispute within the governing Supreme Council of State (SCS) over whether to seek peace with the RUF before multi-party elections, planned for March 1996, or go ahead with the election notwithstanding the ongoing war in the country, and the conditions for participation (or disqualification) of junta members in the elections. The coup was backed by many high ranking NPRC soldiers including Colonel Tom Nyuma, Lieutenant Colonel Komba Mondeh, Lieutenant Colonel Reginald Glover, Lieutenant Colonel Idriss Kamara, and Lieutenant Colonel Karefa-Kargbo. Captain Valentine Strasser then the leader of the NPRC and the military Head of State of Sierra Leone was handcuffed at gunpoint by his own military bodyguards who were supposed to protect him and was immediately flown into exile in a military helicopter to Conakry, in neighboring Guinea.[6]
After the military
After retiring from the military in 1996, Bio moved to the United States, where he earned a Masters Degree in International Affairs from American University in Washington, DC. He also served as the president of International Systems Science Corporation, a consulting and investment management firm based in the United States.[7]
Breaking: Speaker Obasa Debunks Allegation Of Spending N17b On Assembly Gate
The Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, on Thursday described the allegation that the House spent N17 billion on the fixing of a gate as spurious and funny.
A self-proclaimed group, Lagos State Anti-Corruption Coalition, had accused the Assembly of spending the amount to construct a gate. The group also sought investigation of the claim.
Speaking at plenary, Dr. Obasa said the allegation stemmed from the fear of some people over 2027 which is still more than two years away.
Obasa further debunked the claim that the House spent N200 million on its recently organised 22nd thanksgiving service for staff.
“It is so funny. How much is the allocation of the Assembly in the whole year that we will decide to spend N17 billion on a gate? They even claimed that we expended 200 million on thanksgiving that did not hold.
“We are aware that at a period like this when we are approaching elections in 2027, we should expect such things. I think some people are scared and I don’t know why.
“This House did not and has not embarked on any such project. We are not that reckless. We had our thanksgiving last Friday and dignitaries from various parts of the State attended it,” the Speaker said.
Addressing further claims by the group about the alleged relationship between him and the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, the Speaker denied attending the latter’s screening and confirmation by the National Assembly.
“They said that I was at the National Assembly when they were confirming the EFCC chairman. I want to believe that there are CCTV cameras at the National Assembly to identify those who attended the event. The press must have written about it too. So the group should do more to confirm if I was there.
“This is just to deny the allegations in the interest of the public and not the writers because the writers are not those we should be joining words with,” the Speaker said.
Earlier, the House, through its spokesperson, Hon. Stephen Ogundipe, had addressed the allegations noting that the Assembly bases its activities on integrity, transparency and accountability.
“It is ludicrous the claim about constituency intervention funds and constituency project funds and their handling by Speaker Mudashiru Obasa and Clerk of the House, Barr. Olalekan Onafeko as claimed by the group.
“One would have expected a self-acclaimed anti-corruption crusading group to do its groundwork before jumping across the fence with conviction that it hit a jackpot to malign an institution of repute in the name of politics.
“Simply put, the Lagos State House of Assembly does not have any such funds. The Assembly does not embark on constituency projects. Instead, once every year, the House holds stakeholders’ meetings simultaneously across the state where constituents have the opportunity to tell the lawmakers their expectations and make requests for the betterment of the state.
“These requests and expectations are compiled and sent to the executive arm of government for consideration as inputs in subsequent budgets. If this is what the group takes as constituency intervention or project funds, we are sure this explanation has given the required education, moreover, it is common knowledge that it is the responsibility of the Executive arm to execute such projects,” the earlier statement by Ogundipe read.
Eromosele Ebhomele
Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly.
- The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Applauds Egypt’s Milestone Achievement in Medicines and Vaccine Regulation December 22, 2024
- Viewing of State House Christmas Decorations Attracts Record Crowd December 22, 2024
- Uganda, Kenya and South Sudan hold 4th Tripartite Technical Boundary Committee Meeting in Kampala December 22, 2024
- Eritrea: Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare Activity Assessment Meeting December 22, 2024
- Africa Financial Industry Summit (AFIS) 2024: Building African Unicorns (and Gazelles) for Continental Economic Growth (By Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede) December 22, 2024
- Eritrea: President Isaias Holds Talks with Special Chinese Delegation December 21, 2024
- United States of America (US) Government and Ethiopia: Sustaining Gains and Accelerating Progress Toward Ending the HIV Epidemic December 21, 2024
- United Arab Emirates (UAE) Condemns Car Ramming Attack at Market in Germany December 21, 2024
- His Excellency Sheikh Shakhboot Bin Nahyan Meets President of South Africa December 21, 2024
- Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio Presides Over Swearing-In of Chief Justice, Reaffirms Judiciary as Pillar of Democracy December 21, 2024
- The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Applauds Egypt’s Milestone Achievement in Medicines and Vaccine Regulation December 22, 2024
- Viewing of State House Christmas Decorations Attracts Record Crowd December 22, 2024
- Uganda, Kenya and South Sudan hold 4th Tripartite Technical Boundary Committee Meeting in Kampala December 22, 2024
- Eritrea: Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare Activity Assessment Meeting December 22, 2024
- Africa Financial Industry Summit (AFIS) 2024: Building African Unicorns (and Gazelles) for Continental Economic Growth (By Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede) December 22, 2024
- Eritrea: President Isaias Holds Talks with Special Chinese Delegation December 21, 2024
- United States of America (US) Government and Ethiopia: Sustaining Gains and Accelerating Progress Toward Ending the HIV Epidemic December 21, 2024
-
Entertainment6 months agoAkanke Amororo: The New Yoruba Movie Everyone Is Talking About + Why People Are Rushing To YouTube To See It
-
Politics7 months agoGov Fubara And One Year of His Signature in Rivers By Nath Odili
-
Business7 months agoFIRSTBANK WINS 2024 BEST SME BANK IN NIGERIA AND BEST SME BANK IN AFRICA BY ASIAN BANKER AWARDS
-
Business5 months agoPROFILE: JESSICA AMARACHI OKU BY CHINEDU NSOFOR
You must be logged in to post a comment Login