Presidential Leader of the main opposition, All People’s Congress (APC) Party in the 2023 election, Dr. Samura Kamara has strongly advised that both ARISE and KINGHO be brought to the table for resolution and avert any subsequent legal entanglements.
Dr. Samura Kamara wrote on X saying: “I listened with keen interest, as an experienced Sierra Leonean in national economic management and nation building, to recent broadcasts by very senior government officials relative to a tripartite investment relationship between government, ARISE and KINGHO.
“I would want to caution that whatever difficulties there are bordering on this relationship, we desist from going public until the relationship is orderly mended.
“It is not impossible. Let us urge ourselves to handle the matter thoughtfully to prevent potential state embarrassment. Investor appetite for Sierra Leone is still lukewarm. It is strongly advisable to bring both companies to the table for resolution and avert any subsequent legal entanglements.”
The Government of Sierra Leone recently announced the termination of the Port and Rail Agreement with ARISE IIP. A British multinational law firm, headquartered in London and retained by ARISE IIP, has identified eleven breaches on the part of the Government of Sierra Leone of the lease agreement between the Government of Sierra Leone and ARISE IIP for the development, expansion and management of the Pepel Rail and Port.
Briefing the ARISE IIP Board of Directors in Dubai, the legal firm described the legal opinion expressed by Sierra Leone’s Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mohamed Lamin Tarawalley as “totally flawed”. They argued that, the Sierra Leone Government failed to comply with the conflict resolution clauses in the agreement to remedy whatever problem they had with their clients, ARISE IIP.
At a Government of Sierra Leone press conference held at the Radisson Blu Mammy Yoko Hotel in Freetown recently, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mohamed Lamin Tarawalley, said the ARISE IIP’s lease agreement with the Government of Sierra Leone was mutually terminated because, the condition precedents was not met by ARISE IIP.
Founder and CEO of ARISE IIP, Gagan Gupta, noted that because of his good relationship with the President of Sierra Leone he was patiently pursuing a peaceful way out of the current situation.
He called on his team in Sierra Leone to focus on the Industrial Zone at Koya and prove to the people of Sierra Leone that, contrary to what the Mines Minister Julius Mattai said, they are a very serious multimillion dollar international company.
Gagan Gupta reportedly told ARISE IIP Board members in Dubai that what matters to him most is his personal relationship with President Julius Maada Bio and the credibility of his company.
Mr. Gupta promised to take all necessary steps to implement the Koya Industrial Zone project for the good of the people of Sierra Leone.
Arise IIP, is a developer of a world-class industrial ecosystem across Africa, accelerating the growth of 12 integrated industrial zones for the continent’s industrialization and modernization agenda.
Dearth of infrastructure like an effective port system such as Olokola Deep Seaport is a major challenge to the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a trade agreement in the continent, but a project like Olokola Deep Seaport promises to address this loophole.
Through the initiative, Arise Integrated Industrial Platform will focus on developing the infrastructure at the proposed Olokola Free Trade Zone, the Remo Cluster Area and the Agro Cargo Airport to enhance the agro-processing area.