Below is President Kabba's new seurity policy following events in the
country in the last 16 months.  Sometime today, I shall attempt to give
a lay-man's view of what I think the policy portends for the future
country. Stay tuned!
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President Kabbah outlined on Wednesday the structure of the country's
new security forces, which are being formed to replace the former Sierra
Leone Army. In a broadcast to the nation, Kabbah said the nation's new
army would select up to 20% of its members from soldiers of the old army
"whom we have carefully observed over the past few months and found to
be loyal, committed, disciplined, and honest." Kabbah stressed that the
ECOMOG force would not be in Sierra Leone indefinitely, and that it
would take time to establish a more professional, disciplined, and
patriotic army. "For instance, normally in a professional army it takes
at least eight to nine years for a cadet to become a captain," he said.
"There is no way we can as a nation fulfil our security requirements in
the near future without recruiting into the new army well trained and
qualified soldiers in the old army who have demonstrated unequivocally
that they are disciplined and loyal." Kabbah said the country's new
military would consist of 5,000 men and women, comprising an army wing,
a naval wing, an air wing, and a rapid deployment force. New recruits
and members of the former military alike would be subject to a rigorous
screening process before absorption into the new armed forces.
Recruitment into the military will initially be for a period of six
years with subsequent renewals of service being subject to satisfactory
performance and conduct. The role of the Civil Defence Forces (CDF) will
be formalised, with CDF units in all districts of the country. Each CDF
unit will report to the local paramount chief and each district will
have a CDF administrator who will liaise with the military if the CDF is
needed for service outside its locality. "In normal peace time, the role
of members of the CDF will remain what it has always been within common
law and native law, that is, everybody has a legal responsibility to
defend himself, his family and property against intruders as in the case
of the Territorial Army in the United Kingdom and the Reservists in the
United States of America." Kabbah announced the formation of a National
Security Council (NSC) to assist in matters of defence and security, and
added that the government was considering implementing a National
Service programme, which would encourage every able-bodied young Sierra
Leonean to render military service after secondary school.