By Emma Black
Jui Junction
In a decisive move to restore order and ensure public safety, the Freetown-East police division, led by assistant inspector general (AIG) Francis Brima Meinday, on Thursday12 June 2025 conducted a robust operation at Jui Junction aimed at curbing lawlessness and indiscipline along the busy traffic corridor.
The operation targeted unauthorized street traders, commercial tricycles (Kekehs), and motorbike riders (Okadas) who had taken over pedestrian walkways and obstructed vehicle movement, creating serious congestion and safety hazards.
Thursday’s cleanup exercise formed part of a wider national campaign spearheaded by the minister of Internal Affairs, retired AIG Morie Lengor Esq., to address the growing problem of urban disorder across Sierra Leone’s major towns and cities, the campaign focuses particularly on the illegal occupation of sidewalks and roadways by traders and commercial riders.
Under the command of AIG Meinday, police officers cleared makeshift stalls, tables, stools, and unauthorized signage from the sidewalks and road margins. They also established designated parking zones for Kekeh and Okada operators to ease traffic and reduce chaos in the area.
This enforcement drive is part of our continued efforts to decongest key roads in the city, said AIG Meinday, we have conducted similar crackdowns along Sani Abacha Street, model junction on the hillside Bypass, and other high-traffic zones in the Western Area, we are determined to bring sanity back to our streets.
Residents of Jui welcomed the intervention, calling it a much-needed step to reclaim public spaces. Alhaji Sow, a community elder, commended the police for the operation, it was a show of effective coordination, he said, But to make this success sustainable, the authorities must engage with traders, provide alternative trading areas, and ensure continued enforcement so we don’t slide back into the same problems.
The operation was conducted with minimal disruption, and police personnel were strategically stationed at key junctions to maintain law and order and prevent traders and riders from returning to cleared areas, as the dust settles at Jui Junction, the message from authorities is clear: public order and pedestrian safety are not negotiable, with continued community support and coordinated enforcement, officials hope this operation will serve as a model for similar actions across Freetown and beyond.
Copy right –Printed in the Expo Times News on Monday, June 16TH, 2025 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
