CORRUPT MINISTRY OF DEFENSE ARMS DEAL THREATENS SL

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 FREETOWN 000266

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR AF/W (JHUNTER)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/08/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL MASS PINS PINR SL
SUBJECT: CORRUPT MINISTRY OF DEFENSE ARMS DEAL THREATENS SL
AID

REF: FREETOWN 262

Classified By: Political Officer Amy LeMar for Reasons 1.4 (b/d)


1. (S/NF) On July 7, CDA and PolOff met with a high-level,
reliable source with access to intelligence across civilian
and military agencies. Source informed emboffs of an
attempted arms deal brokered by Minister of Defense Palo
Conteh, in collaboration with Chief of Defense Staff
Major-General Alfred-Claude Nelson-Williams and Assistant
Chief of Defense Staff Brigadier Komba Mondeh in early 2009.
The deal would have supplied the Ministry of Defense with 10
years of ammunition, paid for on a per unit (i.e. each bullet
bought individually) basis, at a cost to the government of
USD 8.3 million dollars. The source estimated that this
unusual arrangement would have resulted in over USD 2,000,000
in profits to be shared among the brokers, identified as
Amyland Inc., and the Ministry of Defense (MOD)
representatives. When the UK received back-channel
information about the deal, they forced it to be dropped.


2. (S/NF) The original deal was recently and secretly
resurrected using the same company, at a cost of
approximately USD 4.3 million (Note: Source discovered the
new deal because an MOD underling accidentally mentioned it
during a meeting. End Note). Conteh received approval from
the President for an umbrella procurement account for
expenses related to the UNAMID deployment. This account will
then be used to purchase equipment from Amyland to support
the deployment - costs Conteh alleges are required by the UN
to be paid by the government up-front for future
reimbursement. Source information was confirmed by the
Minister of Finance, who queried CDA and PolOff during an
office visit on July 1 about donor support for the various
peacekeeping deployments. CDA explained that the UK and the
USG are providing millions of dollars worth of equipment, and
is not aware of the UN requirement or the need for additional
equipment. Though unstated, it was clear that the Minister of
Finance finds the new procurement agreement, essentially
giving the MOD carte blanche access to a USD 4.3 million
account, to be irregular. CDA mentioned this to the UK High
Commissioner on July 3, whose suspicions were also aroused.

3.(S/NF) Source also shared information about factions within
the MOD top brass. Conteh and Nelson-Williams have a
particularly close relationship, though neither are known for
their soldiering skills. Conteh rose to the rank of Major,
and then left the military during the coup in 1991 and later
pursued legal studies in the UK. Nelson-Williams joined the
military in 1976, was nearly hung for treason in 1998 due to
his alleged role in the 1996 coup, but is not known for being
particularly impressive. Mondeh, who also escaped a hanging
for treason in 1998, dislikes both men: he is particularly
hostile towards Conteh, who was given his Cabinet seat due to
his popularity with President Koroma. Despite this dislike,
Mondeh is the driving force behind the Amyland deal, and
likely taking Conteh and Nelson-Williams along for the ride
because only they could secure the President's support.
Another faction consists of the Deputy Chief of Defense
Staff, Brigadier Robert Y. Koroma, and (Rtd.) Brigadier
Kellie Conteh, the National Security Advisor to the
President. Koroma is known to be an effective soldier, and
could have a historical relationship with Kellie Conteh.
These two factions fight for the ear of the President, but
his closeness to the Defense Minister means that sometimes
his decisions are made during private discussions with
Conteh, independently of the National Security Council. It's
likely that Palo Conteh was able to push the new Amyland
procurement agreement with the President by assuring him
behind closed doors that it is required for peacekeeping
participation.


4. (S/NF) Source also shared this information with the
British, and they intend to quash the second iteration of the
deal. The planned Consultative Group meeting with donor
countries, expected to be hosted by the UK in London in
November, will be canceled should the deal move forward. They
believe that this deal, like the one before it, was brokered
for the sole purpose of giving Palo Conteh and others a slush
fund, at a time when the Government has little revenue and is
facing a possible currency crisis (reftel).


5. (S/NF) Comment: Peacekeeping activities are a priority of
the President, both to raise the national profile and to
provide needed revenue to his cash-starved budget. There has
been pressure, then, to move as quickly as possible to make
deployments happen. The President is vulnerable to
misinformation regarding this topic, focusing on the ends
rather than the means, and it appears that one of his
favorites is using that to his advantage. Minister Conteh is

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known for being savvy and smooth, but not sharp.
Nelson-Williams is thought by some to be sycophantic, and
generally gives the answers that others want to hear
regardless of accuracy or appropriateness. Mondeh has
business acumen, and is using Conteh and Nelson-Williams for
fairly easy profit. What none apparently anticipated was the
close eye being kept by donors on peacekeeping, and the
collective determination to maintain close controls on an
easily-exploited process. The new Minister of Finance is also
likely an unexpected foe. With stakes as high as these -
peacekeeping and the Consultative Group meeting - the
President will be forced to take a closer look at the
integrity of his Ministry of Defense. The question remains,
though, of what other secret deals are being brokered that
he, and the watchdog international community, are in the dark
about. End Comment.
FEDZER