January 18, 2017 By Regina Pratt
SLPP Member of Parliament from the Kenema district, Hon. Kai-Samba, has observed that there were several challenges in the health, education, and energy and water sectors respectively.
He was contributing to the debate on the Presidential address during the state opening of Parliament in December, 2016.
He reiterated that there were very serious challenges in the health sector, citing the supply of drugs in the delivery of the free healthcare service for pregnant women, lactating mothers and children under five.
“Up to now, there are difficulties in supplying the drugs to the required persons. Women and under-five children still die, a magnitude that is alarming. I am calling on government through the Ministry of Health and Sanitation and its key partners to look into the situation and resolve it,” he expressed.
He however commended government for the water project implemented in Freetown, Bo and Makeni, but stated that children were going out late at night to fetch water, thus calling on government to regulate the water supply in the city.
In the energy sector, the SLPP MP said government made strides to increase the energy supply by rehabilitating the Bumbuna hydro,but stressed that there were some communities in Freetown that were going without electricity, thus urging for a sustainable supply of electricity across the country.
The MP stated that the number of pupils has increased, and that government should endeavour to ensure that the infrastructure and accommodation facilities go in line with the increasing demand.
He noted that there were teachers providing selfless services in the education sector, but that their names were not included in the government payroll, stating that such was a huge challenge.
He further stated that there were now universities in the three regions, with the exception of the eastern, which, he said, has no university despite the fact that proposals have been sent for the eastern polytechnic to be transformed into a university status.