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Gento Group of Companies – Shifting the Goalpost.
Amidst the explanations provided by the Minister of Finance, Sheku Ahmed Fatimandi Bangura, who suggested that the CEO of Gento Group of Companies, Gento Kamara, had inflicted damage on the country’s reputation and image, this medium set out to uncover the facts behind the claims. In an effort to get a clearer understanding, we investigated the allegations and conducted interviews with both the Administrative Officer, Hon. Abdul Munene Lansana, and the Public Relations Officer, Alex Botton, of Gento Group of Companies, to hear their side of the story.
Contrary to the Honourable Minister’s claim that the CEO bypassed procedures, both officers strongly refuted the allegation. They emphasized, with supporting documents referencing the Mining Act that the Grento Group of Companies strictly followed the prescribed procedures outlined in the letter.
According to the Mining Act, the first step taken by the Gento Group of Companies involved discussing their interest in mining with the paramount chiefs and landowners. This initial step by and large laid the foundation for advancing the project a significant move in the long journey of the mining initiative orchestrated by the Gento Group of Companies. With this critical first hurdle successfully cleared, the Gento Group proceeded confidently with the next phases of the project.
A group of companies, led by CEO Gento Kamara, a Sierra Leonean, along with his company, was warmly received by the paramount chiefs, landowners, and the local people. This acceptance reflects the dire
conditions of the environment and the extreme poverty faced by the people, who have endured hardship for far too long. Their situation can be compared to that of a drowning man desperately clinging to anyone who can save him from death.
Over the years, successive governments have come and gone, yet the people of Kasafoni continue to live in poverty despite the region’s rich mineral endowment. For more than thirty years, the government of Sierra Leone has neglected the people and the tribal authorities of Dunsogia, Sambaia, and Diang Chiefdoms. This situation raises an important question: why have the people been left in such despair despite the wealth beneath their feet? Is it now, when a Sierra Leonean–led indigenous company rises to the challenge of transforming the lives of the people and protecting the environment, that the government’s Minister of Finance acts as a spokesman to challenge the genuine investment of the Gento Group of Companies? Where was the government when the people suffered in poverty?
The investigation seems to reveal an outcome instigated by the administration officer, Hon. Abdul Muniru Lansana. The Gento Group of Companies cannot question or challenge the government’s decision. Instead, the Group encourages the government to contract the appropriate institution to carry out the shipment through the railway port, which is currently under construction.
At Banana Island, the project is expected to be completed sometime next year, 2026. In the meantime, the Gento Group of Companies respectfully requests the government’s approval to engage with other companies during this interim period to facilitate the shipment process until the project is finalized.
