In what appears a move to restore Sierra Leone’s monuments and relics, President Julius Maada Bio yesterday visited old Fourah Bay College (FBC) building and the National Railway Museum at Cline Town in Freetown.
The visit manifests the President’s commitment to the restoration of the country’s monuments and relics as well as the education of young People in Sierra Leone.
The visit also means that the time is ripe for Sierra Leone to take back its culture after years of neglect.
The Ceremony was held at the old FBC campus at Cline town attended by several important dignitaries, staff of the Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Monuments and Relics Commission and the Minister of Tourism, Memunatu Pratt.
A number of Americans who traced their root to Sierra Leone were also in attendance.
In his keynote address, President Julius Maada Bio said his government remained ever committed to revamping the tourism sector despite odd things for which Sierra Leone was known for years.
“My government is ready to resuscitate the tourism sector despite Sierra Leone has gone through several odd things like the slave trade, colonialism, 11yrs war, Ebola and the mudslide,” he said.
In spite of the odd things Sierra Leone had experienced, the President said, the country remained a resilient nation.
President Bio is quite hopeful that through togetherness and cooperation, Sierra Leone would be counted among great nations. It is established fact that no nation rises above its literacy standards thus lending credence to premium placed on education by government.
President Bio spoke about his great commitment his government had made to the enhancement of education in this country. Although there are competing needs, the President went on, quality education was what Sierra Leone needed for national development.
“Education is the most important asset a government can give to its people,” the President said.
President Bio also reminded the audience that a great number of Nigerian and Ghanian civil servants were trained here in Sierra Leone in a period dating back to 1827. The President also emphasised the need to capacitate the children of this country so that they could take advantage of the 4th Revolution.
He however warns that the appropriate education must be provided so that it could match the labour requirements of the 21st century.
“The education we give to our children should be fit for purpose,” he said.
President Bio also emphasised that until the country takes education seriously, Sierra Leone would never rise from its present state. He also reminded the people of Sierra Leone that he had made the greatest commitment towards education as the sector gets 22% of the national budget every year.
The pronouncement of quality education is a campaign promise made by the President in 2018 as he believes that it is only education that can move a nation forward. The revival education years after it went into the drain occupied a proud place in the People’s Manifesto of 2018.
The New Direction Government since it came to power has always worked towards this goal by ensuring huge investment in the sector. A 30-minute conducted tour on the old Fourah Bay College building and the National Railway Museum was made by the President.
The old Fourah Bay College buildings at Cline town are a complete shadow of its glorious former self. The buildings have fallen in total disrepairs owing to years of neglect by successive governments. The rains have destroyed a greater part of the building rendering it badly in need of restoration.
During the tour, a staff of the Monuments and Relics Commission, Francis Musa Momoh appealed to President Julius Maada Bio to allocate sufficient funds to the restoration project. He said the building had an historical importance as great scholars notably Adjai Crowther and Lamina Sankoh passed through the building.
“More development would come if the site is restored. We must work together to ensure that the restoration is realised,” he appealed.
Musa informed the President that through the leadership of the Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, much had been done. He said a buffer zone had been identified and a fence constructed.
Despite the building’s collapsed state owing to a heavy down pour, the previous year, Musa is confident that a lot of opportunities could be tapped from the project.
“Those who come to the building would know that a building of this nature existed that contributed tremendously to changing lives in sub-Saharan Africa,” he said.
No Visitor comes to Sierra Leone without expressing the desire to see the old Fourah Bay College building. Musa also hopes that the restoration of the building would add to the value of the Free Quality Education Project.
Musa also hopes that more development would come. The tour was later continued to the National museum where relics of trains were shown to the President.
Train transport was very important to the country’s economy in the pre-independence period. During that period, the train brought goods from the provinces thereby contributing to the country’s export.
The train transport faded away when Sierra Leone attained independence in 1961. While on the tour of inspection, the President and entourage was ushered into a building that housed several trains.
He was briefed by the education officer, Abdul Karim Kanu. Kanu explained to the President how the trains and its various parts were used when they were fully operational.
One of the trains in the building is the Hunslet 2-6-2T Locomotive. This type of locomotive was built by Hunslet in Leeds in England for use by the railway over a period from 1902 to 1954.
The locomotive was used for shunting, and for the transportation of goods, but in practice, they ended up hauling passenger trains for longer distances.
The exact identity of this locomotive is not certain, but it is however important to the history of the railway system in Sierra Leone. The Coordinator of the Railway Museum, Abu Bakarr Kargbo appealed to the President to pay attention to the building for a facelift.
Kargbo told the President that since the building was constructed in 1896, it was only late President Ahmed Tejan Kabba that visited the building.