The message to the moral guarantors presently in Sierra Leone is straightforward: “The quartet Mr Mohamed Moriba, Mr Mombasa, Mr Nice and Madam Zainab Sherriff and hundreds of other detainees were simply exercising their right to freedom of speech.” (Photo: Aja Fatoumata Jallow-Tambajang and other moral guarantors).

These gallant freedom fighters never committed any crime to warrant their arrest and detention by the authoritarian SLPP regime of the illegal President Julius Maada Bio. The joint delegation in Sierra Leone on the follow-up mission should take note of this plea.

True, their primary motive for the visit is to ascertain the status of the full implementation of the tripartite recommendations, which are clearly in short supply because the violence-oriented Bio presidency has foot-dragged on this big issue.

The quartet, Mr Mohamed Moriba, Mr Mombasa, Mr Nice, and Zainab Sheriff, have been in detention for months now without the right to bail for merely expressing their freedom of speech as enshrined in the 1991 Sierra Leone Constitution. (Photos: Mr Moriba and Zainab Sheriff).

But the autocratic SLPP regime of Julius Maada Bio has arrested the quartet and many other innocent Sierra Leoneans since the disputed June 24, 2023, elections for no justifiable reason. Only dictators like Maada Bio would carry out such arbitrary arrests and detentions.

Sierra Leoneans are therefore calling on the moral guarantors to order the tyrants in the SLPP regime to immediately release Mr Mohamed Moriba, Mr Mombasa, Mr Nice and Madam Zainab Sheriff, others from detention where they are languishing for no apparent reason.

As the visit enters its third day, the moral guarantors comprising the UN, AU, Commonwealth, EU, ECOWAS, are urged to step in now to request the illegal President Bio and his wicked APC leadership to free the quartet NOW because these patriots have done nothing wrong.

The unnecessary and barbaric incarceration in prison of Mr Moriba and others is unlawful. Mr Moriba is the PRO for the APC party in Bo District, Mr Mombasa is a senior APC member in the north, and Mr Nice is a fearless social media blogger. All three are fearless activists. (Photos: Moral guarantors must act NOW. And the dictator and illegal President Maada Bio).

Just like Mr Moriba, Mr Mombasa, and Mr Nice, whose social media audios preaching democracy became a thorn in the flesh of Bio and the evil people in Sierra Leone, Madam Zainab Sheriff is another fearless activist and singer.

The prolonged detention of this quartet and other patriots clearly contravened Resolution 4 of the Terms of Reference TOR, which calls for the release of all political prisoners, protesters, and activists from prisons.

But the butcher of Sierra Leone, calling himself President Bio, is continuing to abuse law and order for selfish political purposes. The moral guarantors must intervene now to release all the detainees to prevent chaos in the country.

Since patriotic Sierra Leoneans appreciate the visit of the international community to restore democracy in Sierra Leone in accordance with the full implementation of the 84 tripartite recommendations, the freedom of the quartet and others is of vital importance.