By Josephine Nyeweah in Kenema district
The Deputy Minister of Social Welfare, Mohamed Haji-Kella, has urged proprietors of the two privately run rehabilitation centers in Kenema to consider a more appropriate way of restraining Kush victims.
The Deputy Minister made this statement on Friday, August 23, 2024, when he paid a visit alongside the Kenema City council committee for social welfare to the two privately operated rehabilitation centers.
While speaking to both managements of the centers, he stated that the visit was part of the drive by His Excellency and his government to eradicate kush and other dangerous substances ravaging young people in Sierra Leone.
He further disclosed that the Minister of Social Welfare, Hon. Melrose Kaminty, came to Kenema a week ago to see and get first-hand experience of what was happening at the rehabilitation centers in the district.
The Minister shared that the methods of restraint that were being employed in both centers were inhumane and illegal. Such practices were outlawed both nationally and internationally decades ago.
“We will work with them to adopt new ways of working. This practice must stop with immediate effect.” The minister said.
There were also challenges around overcrowding, poor sanitation, and management picked by the visiting team at the Simbeck Save Our Children Foundation rehabilitation center. He asked his team to work with the management to ensure the situation improved.
Meeting with the victims, the deputy minister reiterated the government’s commitment to the young people of Sierra Leone and told them that they should be drivers of change, not destroyers.
He further shared with them that all those who have gone through rehabilitation successfully will be certified by the Minister of Social Welfare as ambassadors in the fight against Kush in their communities.
