By: Hope Times Staff Writer
The Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Alpha Sesay, has taken Sierra Leone’s justice reform conversation beyond policy rooms in Freetown to the grassroots, engaging councillors of the Western Area Rural District Council (WARDC) on expanding access to justice at community level.
The engagement brought together elected councillors from both the governing Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and the opposition All People’s Congress (APC), offering a rare moment of bipartisan dialogue on a sector often shaped by political contestation. Observers described the meeting as a practical demonstration that justice reform can serve as common ground across party lines.
Minister Sesay praised the cross-party participation, calling it an “incredible show of unity” and a reminder that access to justice is a shared national responsibility rather than a partisan agenda. He stressed that for many citizens particularly those in rural and peri-urban communities justice remains distant, expensive, and intimidating.
From a governance perspective, the discussions underscored the growing importance of local councils as frontline actors in dispute resolution. Councillors outlined how everyday conflicts over land, family matters, and small-scale commerce often escalate simply because communities lack accessible mediation structures. The Attorney General emphasized that councils can play a vital bridging role between formal courts and traditional or community-based mechanisms
Minister Sesay also framed justice as an economic issue, not just a legal one. He noted that unresolved disputes discourage investment, stall small businesses, and weaken social trust. “When people have unresolved justice issues, it impacts local economies,” he said, linking peace, cohesion, and legal certainty to local revenue generation and development.
From the Ministry of Justice’s standpoint, the engagement forms part of a broader strategy to decentralize justice delivery. By empowering councillors as facilitators of mediation and referral pathways, the Ministry hopes to reduce pressure on formal courts while ensuring that citizens receive timely and fair resolutions to disputes.
The meeting concluded with a joint commitment to sustained collaboration between the Ministry and WARDC, with both sides agreeing that justice must be visible, practical, and community-centered. As Sierra Leone continues to pursue governance reforms, the engagement signals a shift toward a model where justice is not only delivered in courtrooms, but also shaped and supported at the grassroots.