October 9, 2018
By Mohamed Massaquoi
Colonel Jalloh making statement
Aspirant for the position of Paramount Chief in the Sambia Bendugu Chiefdom, Tonkolili district, northern Sierra Leone, has called on residents of the chiefdom to unite and push forward development process for the benefit of all.
Lieutenant Colonel Finalalie Sheku Jalloh was addressing a consultative meeting with Bambalpimpi Jalloh in Sokurella village, Buyan section, in Sambia chiefdom.
While addressing over one thousand people from various parts of the chiefdom, Lt-Col. Jalloh said the purpose of organising the meeting was to unify the Jalloh family and engage family members about his intension of becoming a Paramount Chief.
He said he has investigated the historical fact as to how their great grandfathers fought to liberate their people and finally liberated them and carved out a chiefdom, now referred to as Sambia-Bendugu.
He further explained how their ancestors used to elect their leaders, thus calling on residents of Sambia to unite and push for the agenda of peace, unity, tranquillity and love for one another.
He said the chiefdom was not amalgamated like others and that it was a one family establishment that has grown to higher heights today in Sierra Leone, adding that the chiefdom derived its name from the founder Mbiamba Malikie Jalloh from Timbo Burea in the Republic of Guinea.
“Mbiamba Malikie in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries set out in his wonderful expedition and entered into Sierra Leone from the north western part through Lake Sonfon in the Dian chiefdom, Koinadugu district, forming a defence force in a bid to liberate the people. His first contact was with the Togolies and Turays of Diang and later extended his trip to Kasafoni where he met a warrior king called Wolosonkoh Kondeh. Mbimba Malikie became closely associated with the Kondeh clan and second most clan of the Sesay,” he recalled.
“After few seasons, Mbaimba Malikie requested from the Kondeh and Sesay clans that he wanted to access the Leima Mountains as a ploy to overlook the township for any possible invaders .The mountain was granted him and was later named Malian Konkeh in the Kuranko dilate. Mbaiba Maligie was married to Grandmother Delyerie Kondeh and bore three famous children – Mbaimba Samba, Abibu and Kalilu Jalloh.”
He narrated that Mbaimba Samba settled at Bendugu, Abibu at Buyab and Kailiu at Kaliang, now in the Koinadugu district, thus calling on the people to know more about their chiefdom in order to make an informed decision.
“I want to inform you all gathered here today that your decision to elect a Paramount Chief for this chiefdom will go a long way in our development process. The Sambia Chiefdom is still at the bottom of development. I have declared because I want to work reduce poverty. I want to work with you to reduce high illiteracy rate in the chiefdom. If elected Paramount Chief, I will work with the President and his ministers and lobby with development and foreign investors for the development of our chiefdom. I am here to make myself available to you so that you can elect me as your paramount chief of Sambia Bendugu chiefdom,” he concluded.