33 Portland Place, London W1, known to thousands of Sierra Leoneans ever since independence in 1961 as the offices of their  High Commission in the United Kingdom, has allegedly been disposed of under terms and conditions yet to be fully explained to the citizens of the country. The transaction to dispose of these elegant premises was completed around March after many, many years of its woeful neglect by successive Sierra Leone Governments. The salesman was our High Commissioner,  Mr Cyril Foray. 

Foray (seen here, left) has literally smuggled and packaged the High Commission into a joint occupied by, among others, a pornographic film producing company adjacent to a busy public thoroughfare. The new offices are sited above London's busiest underground station, Oxford Circus, and on the city's most bustling and populous shopping promenade, Oxford Street. The entrance to the new premises is flanked to the left by a bureau de change, and to the right by one of the main exits from the Oxford Circus tube station which disgorges an unceasing flow of commuters on to the adjacent pavement.

These days, because of its location, unlike the exclusive and elegant access that was unique to 33 Portland Place, if you want to enter the High Commission you have to negotiate, box, shove and wend your way through hundreds of commuters and shoppers to get to the rather undistinguished and inelegant entrance. When I visited the place last Saturday 21 August (admittedly not on a working day) to take the pictures below, there stood a bible-clutching preacher man who was pacing to and fro across the entrance, shouting the Good News at the huge crowds that went by - Saturday shoppers, tourists and sightseers, street hawkers and traders, pickpockets, etc. 

I had heard it said that the move did not please many of the staff one bit. Some were quoted as saying that they felt as if they were working in a hen coop. Only recently were they able to unpack their boxes since the removal vans dumped them on the premises, because there is apparently less space for them to move around let alone store their stuff. There is one saving grace, it seems. The High Commissioner can still park his official car at the old premises, with the goodwill of the developing company! As for the staff, well there is always a train on the platforms below them. 

The disposal of the old premises and the selection of the current location was carried out with no consultation either with Sierra Leone nationals resident in this country or the majority of the staff at the Mission. From bits of information that one has picked up, 33 Portland Place has been given to a developing company to do it up and then let it in order to recoup their costs. Whether the company has also bought the leasehold is not clear. But the intention, again according to these sources which are by no means official, appears to be that the Sierra Leone Government will rent one of the refurbished floors, possibly the ground floor, from the developers. It is unlikely to include the function room that used to be in the basement. 

One is as yet not close to finding out how much this deal has cost the people of Sierra Leone. But we must assume that it was done with the approval of President Kabbah and his government. It would be unthinkable that Foray single-handedly carried out this transaction without someone in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs knowing about it. 

Focus On Sierra Leone asks the democratically accountable government of President Kabbah in the name of those Sierra Leoneans who care enough about these matters (since there are Sierra Leoneans among us who believe anything goes for them), for a full account of this transaction. In particular: 

(1) Was the transaction carried out with its consent and approval? 
(2) Why was it necessary to do it this way and give away one of our valuable national assets? 
(3) How much has been involved and at what cost has it been to the Nation? 
(4) What does the country gain from this deal now or in the future? 
(5) When will the High Commission relocate to more salubrious surroundings commensurate with the prestige and dignity of its mandate in this country (UK)? 
(6) Can we now expect a full statement from the Government informing the Nation that no individual or individuals have benefited from this deal and that a full account will be made to Parliament in the very immediate future? 

Needless to say, if we get official denial, explanation or clarification of the issues raised here, including from the High Commissioner, we will be pleased to publish it on this site without prompting or delay.

For information:  The address of the new location is: