The Truth & Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Report of Sierra Leone makes it very clear that injustice and maladministration at the Sierra Leone Judiciary contributed in no small measure to the outbreak of the brutal civil strife that engulfed Sierra Leone for eleven years. During the Hearings that produced the Report, many of our leaders made Public Submissions to the TRC. On Tuesday 5th August 2003, President Koroma, as then Opposition Leader, made official Presentation of All People’s Congress (APC) to TRC. He started off by calling on the then Kabbah-led SLPP Government to stay focused on "building a democratic society where basic human rights and justice are strictly observed".

The APC Leader asserted further that, "it is precisely the systematic erosion of individual rights and freedom, the inability to administer justice fairly and biased approach to administering justice that led to the tragic events of the past decade".

Justice Tolla Thompson: Past 70 years... Approaching 80 years We Do Not Need Any Senile Judge!

Ernest Koroma advised further, "These are the evils that are to be avoided especially during this crucial period of healing the social and economic wounds that have been inflicted upon us".

Towards the end of his Presentation, Dr. Ernest Koroma made an observation that Sierra Leoneans must be given justice at all times. He postulated about the importance of upholding justice by stating: "we all owe it to our country, to those who suffered all forms of deprivation and those who lost their lives or limbs during this sad conflict".

And he ended by making a call for us never to tread those ugly paths ever again followed by a Public Apology on behalf of the APC thus: "We have of course made mistakes over the years and to all those who we may have hurt in any way, we say - SORRY. The APC asks for your forgiveness."

After asking for forgiveness, the then Opposition Leader made a call to commitment as follows: "Let us all henceforth commit ourselves to the democratic principles enshrined in our Constitution" to which he added a call for the upholding of "human rights, justice and individual freedoms as a means to "find that harmony to work together and live in peace".

As a further sign of the importance of his beliefs as stated in the year 2003, President Koroma in his 2007 Elections Manifesto, had this to say about the Judiciary: "The inequitable applications of the Law and the lack of fair access to the judicial system have been some of the reasons that have contributed to undermining the Rule of Law in Sierra Leone".

The APC Leader then promised that an APC Government would discourage any form of corrupt and immoral acts within the Judiciary. Strategies for implementing a just dispensation were highlighted after objectives set out.

From all of the above, it should be clear that President Koroma has a vision and a direction for Sierra Leone insofar as learning from the mistakes of the past APC Government which he publicly apologised for in August 2003.

From information in the possession of this writer, President Koroma’s biggest liability right now that is hampering his realisation of his Vision for the Judiciary as stated in his 2007 Manifesto is the retired Supreme Court Judge, Hon. Maitland Emeric Tolla Thompson who now seems to be engaged in alleged acts of abusing his office in an attempt to intimidate this writer from further exposing his maladministration within the halls of the Justice.

On this page are three documents which speak for themselves. One of them is dated November 24th 2009 and it is a receipt for the sum of Le868,461. The other one is a VISITOR’S SLIP dated November 26th 2009 whilst the third one has no date on it but is supposed to be a Judgment Debtor’s Summons (JDS) that is summoning this writer to appear in front of Justice Tolla Thompson on November 25th 2009 with respect to an old judgment of May this year for which an Appeal had been long since filed against. Granted, an Appeal does not automatically mean a STAY OF EXECUTION but the timing of the issuance of this undated JDS is what is interesting.

Now, aside from the fact that an Appeal had been filed against the Judgment, here is the clincher that exposes the maladministration of the Tolla Thompson Court. As can be seen from the November 26th document, the Summons for this writer to appear in front of Justice Tolla Thompson on November 25th 2009 (Last week Wednesday) was delivered by Justice Tolla Thompson’s clerk, Mr. Ibrahim Samura on November 26th 2009 (Last Week Thursday). The Court Clerk, by the will of God Almighty, proceeded to fill out a VISITOR’S SLIP at my Office stating the reason for his visit.

Dear Readers, How can I be served a Summons on November 26th 2009 (Last Week Thursday) that calls for me to face Justice Tolla Thompson on November 25th 2009 (Last Week Wednesday)?

What could have led to such an obnoxious mal-dated development? What shady plan is in the works? Could it be the use of Bailiffs? Or could it be a Plan to Start Contempt Proceedings with an unfounded allegation that I flaunted a lawful Court Order? What is the answer? The answer, my dear Readers might shock and alert any well-meaning Sierra Leonean to the fact that the greatest liability to President Koroma’s dream of a Judiciary that will move away from the ills of the old APC’s past is none other than Hon. Justice Maitland Emeric Tolla Thompson’s Court. Please purchase a copy of Wednesday’s Awareness Times Newspaper to read the reprehensible conduct that is now bestriding the halls of the Judiciary.

From May 2009 when the judgment was given, is it only now in November 2009 after I started the Manjia Balema Samba series that Tolla Thompson’s Courts is moved to initiate an UN-DATED Judgment Debtor Summons???? And how can I be served a Summons some 24 hours after the date on which the Summons calls on me to appear???? When the Court Processes of a Supreme Court Judge stoops this low, what do we expect Magistrates to do?

In the interim, my dear readers, please pay close attention to the Receipt also on Page 7 which is dated November 24th 2009 as it is a vital component to the full explanation of sheer pettiness (senility?) that is the substance of this feature. I was alerted by friendly persons who spoke of a conversation between one Bailiff and a certain Judge. I was forewarned of what was being planned and so with an abundance of caution, even though I had my doubts about the source of my information, I took steps to settle the judgment I had appealed against. Really, I did not believe a Senior Judge would be as petty as recounted to me! How wrong I was as the evidence was to later show!

What was my crime for which such a dastardly plan was hatched to embarrass me with Bailiffs and/or Contempt Proceedings? Thank God they failed! My crime is that I dared to undertake and champion the matter of poor Manjia Balema Samba who was facing serious persecution.

Just like I did for the late Gloria Newman-Smart, this writer took up the issue of Manjia Balema Samba not to spite anyone but what has been uncovered about Justice Tolla Thompson since the start of the investigations into this issue has been frightening to say the least and this has acted as the catalyst for the strong stance we have taken up against Justice Tolla Thompson. That man needs to quit the Judiciary and quit quickly. The sooner President Koroma and Chief Justice Tejan-Jalloh realise this, the better for Sierra Leone!

If President Koroma does not pause and review his 2007 Elections Promises and/or his 2003 TRC Apologies to this Nation, viz-a-viz what is happening right now with the likes of Justice Tolla Thompson, he is taking this country right back to where his predecessors left it: i.e: Back to a state of Bitterness borne out of Sheer Injustice in the Land.

Justice Tolla Thompson’s Court, in apparent reaction to the coverage of his maladministration of justice, has seemingly plotted to strike back at this writer in a petty manner that could be interpreted as coming from a mind gone either senile or psychologically impaired. And this country does not need any senile Judge right now.

What this country needs right now as an adjunct to President Koroma’s vision are vibrant, morally-upstanding and incorruptible Judges whose grey and white matter within their skull bones are still well infused with capillaries and veins through which bright red, healthy blood cells are flowing. We do not need poorly infused, half-dead neurons inside aged skull bones that are long since past three score years and ten and roaming in Alzheimerish electric signals.

The wise ones say, when your time is past, give way to the Younger Generation or as the popular song goes... TIME DON DONE, NA FOR GO!

Meanwhile, Mrs. Manjia Balema-Samba is still awaiting the response to her October 13th 2009 Letter addressed to the Chief Justice Umu-Hawa Tejan Jalloh which was hand-delivered to Justice Tolla Thompson. Creating judicial scenarios to embarrass Sylvia Blyden will not take away from the fact that Justice Tolla Thompson owes both the Honourable Chief Justice and Mrs. Manjia Balema-Samba some explanations as to what happened to that Letter.