OPEN LETTER: Justice Buried in Kono — How Politics Cripples the Fight for Workers’ Rights

To:

• Octea/The Management of Koidu Holdings Ltd
• The Ministry of Employment, Labour and Social Security,
• Fatima Bio, First Lady of Sierra Leone
• Ben Kelfala, Anti-Corruption Commission of Sierra Leone,
• Sierra Leonean Mine Workers
• Council of Paramount Chiefs of Kono District
• The People of Sierra Leone, Home and Abroad

Dear Stakeholders:

This is a call for transparency, justice, and genuine intent in the Koidu Holdings Workers’ dispute. The unfolding situation surrounding the urgent labor dispute at Koidu Holdings has not only gripped the attention of Sierra Leoneans worldwide but has also sparked serious concerns about the intersection of labor rights, political power, and corporate responsibility in our country.

What began as a peaceful protest by mine workers over unfair treatment, suspensions, salary increases, and poor working conditions has escalated into a national spectacle. Instead of being centered on the workers’ legitimate grievances, the narrative is now dominated by political rivalry and public spectacle, with the country’s First Lady, Fatima Bio, at the center.

To Octea/Koidu Holdings Ltd.

Based on the Joint Statement issued on March 20, 2025, between Koidu Holdings Limited and the Ministry of Employment, Labour and Social Security, your refusal to reinstate dismissed workers, despite the Ministry’s clear recommendations, undermines the principles of fairness and corporate accountability. Labeling the strike as “illegal” under the Industrial Relations and Trade Union Act may be legally defensible. But ethically, you are failing the people whose labor sustains your profits. The proposed bonus scheme and salary reviews are commendable, but only if they are implemented in good faith and not as bargaining chips to end the strike.

To the Ministry of Labour

Your February 28 letter reflected the will of the people and the principles of justice. Yet, if these recommendations remain unenforced, your credibility and workers’ rights across the country stand at risk. A Ministry that cannot ensure compliance cannot protect the very people it was created to serve. You must be prepared to uphold the law, not just with words but with action.

To First Lady Fatima Jabbie Bio

Your public alignment with the striking workers raised eyebrows. While some people may have appreciated your stance, the subsequent fallout, including your dispute with Octea and the swift reaction by the country’s Anti-Corruption Commissioner, Ben Kelfala, casts doubt on your intentions. You stated in your recent video message that Koidu Holdings wrote to you saying that they no longer wanted you to be involved in the negotiations. That should have been the end of the discussion. When labor advocacy becomes entangled with personal interest, political influence, and state retaliation, it threatens to delegitimize the cause you claim to support. If your goal is truly justice for Sierra Leonean workers, then allow due process to prevail. Step aside and stop making the workers’ struggle a prop in your political theater.

To Ben Kelfala (ACC)

The public should know: Are you acting in the interest of national accountability, or as an instrument of personal vendetta? The timing of your investigation into Koidu Holdings, days after they conflict with Fatima Bio, a woman you publicly acknowledge as your “big sister,” raises serious questions about institutional integrity and independence in Sierra Leone. Transparency must never serve as a cover for political intimidation.

To Koidu Mines National Workers

Your courage in standing up for your rights and fighting for justice is highly commendable and has not gone unnoticed. But be on your guard. You staged a protest at which nobody heard your voices or saw you. All the world could see was the country’s First Lady Fatima Bio, controlling the megaphone and the protest; thereby drowning your voices. You have a long way ahead in this fight. So, do not allow your voices to be co-opted by politicians who have louder voices but different agendas. This fight began with your demand for dignity, and it must end with your dignity reinstated, not sacrificed for someone else’s political gain.

To Kono District Paramount Chiefs

Your recent letter to Julius Maada Bio reflects the depth of the region’s current crisis. Sierra Leoneans must seriously pay attention to your warning that “Kono is not safe,” and the government must treat your warning with the seriousness it deserves. The fact that former mine workers are threatening civil unrest due to the government’s failure to address their end-of-service benefits is a national emergency. Your appeal for immediate government intervention is a local concern and a national alarm bell. As custodians of the land, your voices must be heard and respected in shaping a way forward.

To the People of Sierra Leone

This dispute between Koidu Holdings and its national workers is bigger than the Kono district. It is about how political power is used in our country. Whether to protect the vulnerable or to punish dissent, we must stand together to demand that truth, fairness, and transparency prevail, regardless of whether the perpetrator of injustice wears a corporate suit or a political hat.

In Closing

I call on all relevant parties to return to the table with genuine intent, to act not out of ego or self-service, but out of duty to our country and its people. The diamonds beneath the soil of Kono should not cost us the soul of our nation.

Sincerely,
Fatima Babih
A Concerned Sierra Leonean National, USA