By William Selmah wselmah@gmail.com
Locals in the surrounding settlements of the Sime Darby plantation in Bomi and Grand Cape Mount Counties west of Monrovia are calling for an independent probe into the recent death of the Company’s Grievance Chairman Okastine M. Kollie.
Mr. Kollie’s lifeless body was found on March 24, 2018 on the plantation with multiple wounds.
After a police investigation reported that he died as a result of a vehicle accident, the citizens immediately released a statement saying that the scenario creates more room for questions than answers.
“We strongly believe indeed that there was a foul play for several reasons: the first is that the motorbike on which the deceased was riding had no impact indicating that it was hit or that it collided with another moving object. Besides, the motorbike in question was taken from the reported accident scene to another location before the case was reported to police,” the statement said.
Furthermore, it continued, “plantation managers never reported said accident until after two days and before employees and citizens staged a protest demanding explanation into the cause of Kollie’s death.
They want a panel of independent investigators including the religious community, civil society, Press Union, whistle blowers union and eminent citizens of their community constituted to probe the cause of Okastine Kollie’s death.
The statement signed by Golafalie JB Kandeh noted that the reported accident was never promptly reported to police within 24 hours by the Sime Darby management though one of its senior staffers was an occupant of the pickup that reportedly hit the motorcycle on which the deceased was riding’’.
The citizens said they are also particularly baffled by the fact that the incident occurred on the heels of a failed attempt to have the victim representing the workers sign a bargaining agreement, because he saw it as not being in the workers’ interest.
It is against this backdrop that they are calling for a reconstruction of said accident scene and a fresh probe including an independent autopsy to establish how Kollie died.