By Ibrahim Joenal Sesay
FREETOWN, Apr. 26 (232news.com) – One of the criticisms of the NPRC putsch government is that they failed to make the military an enviable entity as their quarters were nothing to write home about but it seems as if President Julius Maada Bio is making up for the failures of the NPRC regime to the military by commissioning an ultra-modern officer mess.
On Monday 25 April, His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio presented the ultra-modern buildings to officers of the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces, RSLAF, at the Military Barracks on Wilberforce
“But it does not end there. This building will only cater for the accommodation and social activities of Officers. But we also believe that other ranks of the force should have access to modern facilities. From this ceremony, I will move to the Warrant Officers and Senior Non-Commissioned Officers’ ground to turn the sod for the construction of an ultra-modern Mess for their use,” President Bio said
On the 30 of December 2019, President Bio turned the sod for the construction of the buildings unveiled, adding that in record time, and in spite of the challenges of a global pandemic and other constraints, they reduced the old Myohaung Officers’ Mess to rubble and then transformed it into imposing edifices that would serve generations of fine officers.
“In 2018, President Xi welcomed me to the People’s Republic of China, and also discussed and concluded with me several agreements on areas of cooperation between our two friendly nations. This beautiful building is a result of that trip,” the President maintained
Adding that: “my government, through the Ministry of Defence, has procured a limited number of furniture while we await the full complement of customized furniture and equipment from the People’s Republic of China. Once that arrives and is installed, the building will be fully available for use.”
He noted that he had always spoken about purposeful infrastructural development and that was why he was going to make sure that the officers must not access such magnificent buildings on pock-marked and dusty roads and as a result of that he (Bio) has authorised funding to the Sierra Leone Roads Authority to pave the network of roads within the Wilberforce Barracks area.
In a welcome address earlier, Brigadier General Dauda Fred Alpha, Commandant of Third Infantry Brigade and President of the Mess Committee, said he was profoundly honoured to be at the epoch-making event, and observed that the facility had been upgraded to a state-of-the-art complex.
He further noted that the Mess consisted of 104 self-contained rooms, fully furnished for young and single officers, adding that it had a 350-seater conference hall, a kitchen with a 90-seater dining hall, a classical gym, and an elevator.
“I would like to assure His Excellency and our audience that stringent measures have already been put in place to sustain this legacy through comprehensive Standard Operating Procedures, among others to emphasis a daily upkeep and periodic inspection of these magnificent structures,” he assured.
Minister of Defense, Brigadier General (Rtd), Kelly Hassan Conteh, said it was with a heart filled with joy and gratitude to God that he was a part of the commissioning of the newly builtingle Officers’ Mess and the turning of the sod for the construction of the Warrant Officers, and Sergeants Mess, adding that it was a fulfilment of President Bio’s commitment to upgrading the RSLF into a professional institution.
He further noted that the work was completed in real-time, despite the disruption caused by the Coronavirus disease, saying that they at the Ministry of Defense were grateful to the President and the People’s Republic of China for the construction of the edifice.
Chinese Ambassador to Sierra Leone, His Excellency Hu Zhangliang, said the construction of the Myohaung Officers’ Mess was another concrete step to maintaining the China–Sierra Leone cordial relationship and was one of the priority projects of their cooperation, noting that, the project would not only contribute to the improvement and living conditions of the RSLAF, but it would also bring them a stronger sense of honour and mission and help boost their morale.
