The High Commissioner for Sierra Leone in the United Kingdom, His Excellency Edward Mohammed Turray has emphasized that Sierra Leone is no longer at war but stable and ripe for investment.

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“It is sad that people think we are still fighting but we are talking investment, there is no war in Sierra Leone, go and see for yourself, our president walks freely through the night, Sierra Leone is stable,” he maintained.

He praised the presidency and the stability of the country which he attributed to God and good governance of President Koroma who he said has transferred his business skills into politics making him a successful statesman.

The High Commissioner was speaking in the studios of Voice of Africa Radio when he was hosted on its People’s Parliament on Friday to highlight the achievements of his outfit in the country.

Mr Turray noted that his first priority upon coming into office was to investigate the circumstances that led to the sale of the former Sierra Leone High commission at 33 Portland Place which was a mansion compared to the present building which he described as a ‘hut’.

“We heard it was sold under fraudulent circumstances so my first step was to find out who was responsible by engaging the services of solicitors to investigate the matter. “

The High Commissioner called on Sierra Leoneans in the country to pray for divine intervention and the righteousness of God to prevail in the matter.

Before he assumed post, His Excellency said there was a rift between the staff of the High Commission and Sierra Leoneans in the country and as a result called a ‘Diaspora’ meeting to address the situation.

At the meeting, Mr Turray said he made it clear that he stood for all Sierra Leoneans irrespective of their political sympathies with the aim to unite all of them adding his position as the High Commissioner was not  political.

Commenting on his success as a High Commissioner ,Mr Turray said his ‘surgeries’ were very popular with his people because they offered them the opportunity to tell the High Commission what afflicted them through the provision of free legal and other professional consultations.

A fast-track visa and immigration system has been put in place by the High Commission to ensure that Sierra Leoneans and other investors could travel freely to Sierra Leone for business without delay as was the case previously.

“We want investors who want to help the country do so freely. This will also help to disabuse the mind of people who still think Sierra Leone is at war”

Sierra Leone, he said was a country in transition which will soon become the hub of Africa under the able leadership of the incumbent president, Dr Ernest Bai Koroma who he said ‘runs his government like a business.’

Touching on the cause of the civil wars that ravaged the country for over a decade, Mr Turray said there were reports of bad governance, nepotism and greed among others which some people came with the idea to eradicate but became more corrupt than their predecessors.

Things he said changed for the better after President Koroma took over in 2007 making Sierra Leone the 53^rd peaceful nation among 149 others according to this year’s Global Peace Index.

Coups he said were no longer fashionable in Africa and maintained that President Koroma will win next year’s presidential elections in Sierra Leone because he was the ‘darling’ of the people.

The High Commissioner expressed his heartfelt thanks to members of the West African Peace Keeping Force (ECOMOG) for dying for Sierra Leone.

“A lot of ECOMOG soldiers died for us and I am very thankful.”

In his final remarks the High Commissioner urged citizens of Sierra Leone to pray to God to maintain the stability of the country as well as to respect it but not to criticise or write bad things about Sierra Leone.

“Pray to God for the stability of the country and stop criticising your country, stop writing things about your country-respect your country,” he added.

By Florence Simpson/Voice of Africa Radio/UK