By Aruna Brima
Reports reaching this newspaper indicate that the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) are alleged to have declared Abdul Rahman Bangura wanted for allegedly inciting citizens to take part in the 10 August 2022 riot in Freetown, in which about six police personnel were murdered in cold blood and a good number of civilians also lost their lives.
The aftermath of what is now known as August 10th was massive arrests of activists and persons mainly from the main opposition, the All People’s Congress (APC), and subsequent trials with the Sierra Leone Police later publishing a “Wanted List” of those who were believed to be behind it or to have taken part in the riot.
One of those who are reported to be “wanted” is Abdul Rahman Bangura. Although he is a local journalist working for The Confidence newspaper, he is known for being actively involved in political commentaries on both traditional and social media. The police are alleging that he is one of those who incited other young people via his political commentaries to take to the streets, which eventually led to the deaths of six police personnel and scores of civilians.
Reports further indicate that several attempts made by the police to arrest him failed as he is said to have already fled the country.
Family sources earlier on informed this newspaper that they had come under several threats from the police who are reported to be still looking for Abdul Rahman Bangura.
Before the August 10 incident, Abdul Rahman Bangura was a member of the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) and also a member of the Sierra Leone Sports Writers’ Association (SWASAL).
It could be recalled that on 24 August 2022, a Public Notice from the Office of the Press Secretary announced “the establishment of a Special Investigation Committee to examine both the immediate and underlying causes, sources of financing, execution and consequences of the [August 10th] insurrection, as well as the response of security forces during the insurrection”.
It is reported that Abdul Rahman Bangura might have already fled Sierra Leone because he thinks he might have been one of the targets of the Special Investigation Committee. But another report indicates that he might still be in hiding waiting for the right time to flee the country.
What is worrisome is the fact that even before the commencement of the Committee; several people have already been tried and sentenced to various jail terms for their alleged part in the August 10th riot.