Ahead of the raining season, Sierra Leoneans have raised serious concerns with strong demand to close down the EPA or overhaul the entire agency. This demand is a queue in line with another demand that was made by one of our Members of Parliament who said in Parliament that EPA should be closed. It was also broadcast on Star TV by Leonora Jawara. The Voiceless Sierra Leoneans are claiming that EPA is always fighting with the NMA or chasing most of the Mining or Exploration Companies for an exorbitant amount being charged for Environmental Impact Assessment License (EIA).

1. Pen Of The Voiceless
With Elkass Sannoh
IS THE EPA-SL STILL ASLEEP?
Sierra Leoneans Worried Ahead Of The Raining Season
It was on Wednesday, 6th September, 2015 when Sierra Leone had devastating torrential rains
which displaced hundreds of inhabitants in the country’s capital and destroyed valuable
properties. Apart from the houses that were destroyed on that fateful day, lives were lost and
majority of the slum dwellers suffered serious bodily damage due to what many described as
“incompetence of the Environment and Protection Agency (EPA-SL) under the leadership of
Madam Jatow Jalloh.”
The unanswered question on the lips of many Sierra Leoneans is, why the Government of Sierra
Leone separated the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from the Ministry of Lands,
Country Planning and the Environment at a very critical time like this? Another mind-boggling
question is, why the exorbitant amount being wasted to pay rent for a gorgeous building that
houses the agency when we have other Government buildings at the New England Ville? If the
National Minerals Agency had been wisely relocated to New England Ville as part of
Government’s financial discipline, why not urgently do the same with the EPA?
Being established by an Act of Parliament dated 11th September 2008 under No. 44 of the Sierra
Leone Gazette, the primary mandate of the EPA is to protect and preserve the Sierra Leonean
environment, so that the country and inhabitants will realize the full benefit that comes with
God’s natural gift which is the environment.

2. If The Voiceless Sierra Leoneans are to say the truth, the EPA is not well capacitated and
sophisticated to be a separate agency to man the environmental problems facing Sierra Leone.
The agency is reportedly ill-equipped and being misdirected! This and many other reasons have
warranted the APC led Government to hire the services of a reputable legal firm to rewrite the
EPA Act with a well spelt out duties and responsibilities. With this new EPA Act, the agency
will not go ahead in hijacking functions that were not bestowed to it which over the years have
created unnecessary problems for the National Minerals Agency-NMA or the Ministry of Mines
and Mineral Resources.
Findings made by The Voiceless Sierra Leoneans revealed that the “incompetence” of the EPA
under the current management structure were some of the key reasons why Sierra Leone was
ranked as being one of the three most hazardous countries on environmental degradation and
climate change. In fact, some are saying that we are living in the most vulnerable country in the
world. Indeed this has been alluded by the recent 2016 Global Peace Index (GPI) Report from
the Institute for Economic Peace. It ranked Sierra Leone as one of the most dangerous countries
in the world. This revelation/s is worrisome!
Ahead of the raining season, Sierra Leoneans have raised serious concerns with strong demand
to close down the EPA or overhaul the entire agency. This demand is a queue in line with
another demand that was made by one of our Members of Parliament who said in Parliament that
EPA should be closed. It was also broadcast on Star TV by Leonora Jawara. The Voiceless
Sierra Leoneans are claiming that EPA is always fighting with the NMA or chasing most of the
Mining or Exploration Companies for an exorbitant amount being charged for Environmental
Impact Assessment License (EIA).
In the EPA Act or Mines and Minerals Act of 2008, there is nowhere you can find a provision
authoritatively stating that an Exploration Company should have an EIA License. In fact there is
no spelt out amount for an EIA License. On the contrary, a mining or an exploration licenses
have a specified amount/s that is already to the public knowledge. This is the crux of the problem
between EPA and all mining or exploration companies.
EPA’s argument to this is that, even though it is not boldly written in the EPA Act (as well as the
amended version of 2010), the agency says their Executive Director-Madam Jatow Jallow and

3. her management have developed a Regulation that captures this missing provision. The
Voiceless is asking, why use a Regulation (which did not go through Parliament) to hunt
exploration or other companies to extort huge amount from them? Contemptuously, the fee
charge per company is discretional.
The core business of the EPA should not just be fighting with NMA or “trying to destroy the
mining sector.” EPA should be involved in protecting and improving on the environment for
wildlife and good human habitation. According to Michael Evans of Earth Times Organisation,
“Lack of foresight is a common cause of an environmental disaster.” He added that some form of
human action usually causes environmental disaster, or some form of human negligence. A
classic example is with Climate Change. Vast amounts of greenhouse gas are currently being
released into the earth's atmosphere, potentially doing untold harm to our environment by
speeding up global warming. At the same time authorities are completely ignoring the warning
signs and shutting their minds to the consequences that lie ahead. The world seems to be on
course for what is likely to be the worst environmental disaster of all time. Is the EPA actually
on course to protect and preserve our environment amidst those growing environmental disasters
in the country? EPA should cease from being reactive and now jump into robust prevention.
With a population of 7,075,641, according to the 2015 Population and Housing Census, we are
still battling with huge environmental problems such as global warming; deforestation; natural
disaster; air pollution; urban sprawl; waste disposal; ozone layer depletion; water pollution;
climate change and many more. In addition, weather conditions are already a central
consideration. Heavy rains, for example, wash chemicals and nutrients off farmlands into rivers
and in addition, contribute to flooding by swelling streams and rivers. Over the last few decades,
the exploitation of the planet and degradation of our environment have gone up at an alarming
rate. With such huge global challenge, EPA’s role should not be strongly limited to too much
talking, all in the name of raising awareness. The agency should be seen acting as President
Ernest Bai Koroma once asserted that, “action pass intention.” In short, empty vessel should
stop making the loudest noise.

4. As a way of recommendations, the authorities concerned to protect and preserve our environment
should lift their eyes beyond business as usual and arise to one of the greater ambitions in order
to deliver on a new and meaningful 2015 United Nations Paris Climate Agreement.
Government should not allow EPA to be independent of the Ministry of Lands, Environment and
Country Planning. EPA should be supervised by the Ministry to put it on its toes as the current
Executive Director is wrongly going with the idea that because the agency is under the Office of
the President, it is above all Ministries.
Ahead of this year’s World Environment Day Celebration, EPA must sincerely reflect on their
activities, look at their enormous challenges and then try to honestly correct those errors for a
sustainable and safer environment. Yes, The Voiceless Sierra Leoneans are deeply worried ahead
of the raining season.
Without sentiment and personality prejudice, the EPA Board and Management should bring
onboard all Civil Society Organisations, Journalists, NGOs, INGOs and other development
partners working to complement GoSL’s efforts protecting and preserving the environment. With
such achievement, they should with one voice lobby the Government in domesticating all
environmental treaties as well as the establishment of the Environmental Council. The agency
should make it compulsory in establishing a network of “Environment Protectors” as a call for
all to care for the earth and garner effort to effect positive change for the good of the world.
The Voiceless is calling on all Sierra Leoneans and non-Sierra Leoneans living in the country to
play a contributing role/s in protecting the country’s rich environment for the good of all. This is
the Pen of The Voiceless Sierra Leoneans.
Email:superilsannoh5@gmail.com Twitter: SannohElkass