Sierra Leone News Today

Milton Margai College Administration disallows students from taking first semester exams.

The administration of Milton Margai College of Education and Technology (MMCET) has disallowed hundreds of new and continuing students from taking their first semester exams for not paying their tuition fees of at least up to 70% or full 100% for the 2019/2020 academic year. Students who had paid over 50% of their fees said they have pleaded to the college administration but they are still being rejected. Elizabeth Sesay public relations officer of the college said the administration has informed first-year students to pay full 100% of their fees and continuing students to at least pay 75% before taking exams. She further said over the past years students have owed the college a lot and that the fees paid by the students are used to run the college activities, so if students don’t pay “how will they run the college?”.

ACC interrogates former education minister.

The Anti Corruption Commission has interrogated the former minister of education, Dr. Minkailu Bah on the agreement between the government of Sierra Leone and the administration of the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology. In 2016 Limkokwing University, a privately owned Malaysian university established its campus in Sierra Leone and most students were government-sponsored. Dr. Bah by then was at the front of the negotiation between the government and the Limkokwing University. The present government refuses to pay fees for students and said that the agreement between the then government and the university administration was a fraud and the bill was never taken to parliament for ratification. For the past months, the university has refused to allow government-sponsored students to take lectures.  

CAF cancels Afcon qualifications over the fear of COVID-19.

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has canceled qualifying matches between Sierra Leone and  Nigeria in the ongoing 2021 African Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifications and other matches as well. According to Abdel Bah, the acting secretary-general of CAF said the decision to halt the Afcon qualifies came as a result of the COVID-19 virus and that the World Health Organisation (WHO)  has declared it a global pandemic. So for that reason, they are postponing all qualifying matches until further notice. He further said a new schedule will be announced in due time.