Chinese Loans to Sierra Leone: Examining the Authenticity of Loans Allegedly Extended to the Republic of Sierra Leone by the People’s Republic of China.
By Mahmud Tim Kargbo
To His Excellency, President Xi Jinping,
The General Secretary of the Communist Party of China,
C/O The Embassy of China in Sierra Leone,
Freetown.
Dear Sir,
SUBJECT: CHINESE LOANS TO SIERRA LEONE: A CALL FOR VALIDATION OF LOANS ALLEGEDLY EXTENDED TO THE REPUBLIC OF SIERRA LEONE BY THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA.
Firstly, please accept our sincere congratulations on your steadfast and visionary leadership in guiding China to a prominent position in the global community. Your significant achievements in promoting free trade, international commerce, shared prosperity, and multilateralism, especially in contrast to the increasingly inward-looking approach of the United States, are highly commendable.
Moreover, your leadership in establishing alternative frameworks for global commerce and international cooperation, coupled with the expansion of China’s financial, military, and technical support to various entities and nations worldwide, further cements China’s emerging role in global affairs.
This letter specifically addresses the issue of financial assistance and loans reportedly extended to the Republic of Sierra Leone. We wish to initiate a dialogue regarding this matter with your esteemed office.
There has been a significant increase in reports of loans and financial support provided by the Chinese government and its financial institutions to the Republic of Sierra Leone. The frequency and scale of these loans and financial agreements announced by both the former administration of Ernest Bai Koroma and the current Julius Maada Bio administration are unprecedented in Sierra Leone’s history. This surge has raised pertinent questions regarding the usefulness, authenticity, and legal legitimacy of these loans and financial agreements in Sierra Leone.
As you may be aware, or as the Chinese Embassy in Sierra Leone has informed you, Sierra Leone has specific constitutional and administrative requirements that grant agreements (or alleged agreements) made on behalf of the country’s validity and legality. These include international loans and financial agreements. The absence of these criteria renders any such agreements non-binding and effectively invalid.
I wish to draw your attention to Section 116 subsection (3) of the Constitution of the Republic of Sierra Leone, 1991, which stipulates that any treaty involving Sierra Leonean officials must be ratified and domesticated by Sierra Leone’s Parliament to be valid and binding. Furthermore, Section 111 subsection (4) of the Constitution prohibits any withdrawal from Sierra Leone’s national treasury, including for loan repayments or servicing of financial facilities, without prior authorization from the Parliament.
When taken into account, these constitutional provisions exempt the Republic of Sierra Leone’s government and populace from any obligations or liabilities resulting from treaties or agreements that the Parliament did not ratify and domesticate.
The concerns raised herein are particularly relevant given the growing calls for comprehensive restructuring and renegotiation of Sierra Leone’s loans and the opaque manner in which loans and financial facilities from the People’s Republic are managed.
It is imperative to clarify that this communication is not a call to terminate bilateral relations and developmental collaborations with the Republic of Sierra Leone. Rather, it is a call for increased vigilance and adherence to due processes, ensuring that any agreements truly involve the Republic and are not merely the work of opportunists in both China and Sierra Leone engaging in unenforceable, fraudulent financial transactions. Given your government’s firm stance against corruption, we trust that these issues will receive the prompt attention they warrant.
Additionally, this correspondence should not be interpreted as a deterrent to Chinese investments in Sierra Leone or across Africa, contrary to the rhetoric of certain detractors who have exploited Sierra Leone and Africa for some time. All investments that benefit the local populace are welcomed.
We remain, with high regards,
For: Alert Citizenry.
Mahmud Tim Kargbo
