Date: 11 February 2013 His Lordship the Bishop of Freetown and the North Bishop’s Court 105 Fourah Bay Road Freetown Sierra Leone My dear Lord Bishop,
RE: RELOCATION OF THE ANNIE WALSH MEMORIAL SCHOOL (AWMS)
Greetings in the precious name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. I write to you as a fully communicant member of the Anglican Diocese of Freetown and as an old boy of the Sierra Leone Grammar School (SLGS) of which the Annie Walsh Memorial School (AWMS) is our sister school within the Diocese of Freetown. It is no longer a secret that the government of the Republic of Sierra Leone has proposed to you the proprietor of the AWMS, that the present location of the school is no longer suitable for the pursuit of academic excellence. Furthermore, it is the government’s intention, according to the proposal made to you, that the present location be utilized for the construction of a modern market which is to be occupied by traders that are currently being removed from the streets of Freetown. May I hasten to state that it is very scandalous for the government to even think of such a proposal for a site which the government should have thought of turning into a heritage site for being the first secondary school for girls in the entire sub region which was established in 1849. Permit me sir to remind the government through you, that according to the late Dr. Leslie Shyllon’s book published in 2008 which is titled “Two centuries of Christianity in an African Province of Freedom”, Miss Julian Sass was sent out by the Church Missionary Society (CMS) in 1848 specially to establish an institution for girls in Freetown which started formally in 1849. The present location was a gift to the Anglican Diocese by the late Rev. & Mrs Walsh of Warminster, England, in memory of their daughter who had died at the age of 22 years; hence the name ‘Annie Walsh Memorial School’. The foundation stone was laid on 7th May 1861 and the premises were ready for use in July 1865. Thus, the school has been in its present location for almost one hundred and fifty years. The architectural design is unique and with so much history and years of contribution to education of women, not only in Sierra Leone but in the sub region, should lead to the school be considered one of the heritage sites in Sierra Leone. I do not wish to elaborate the women of excellence which the school has produced over the years and is still producing. As custodian of the properties of the Diocese of Freetown, including the present location of the AWMS, I urge you sir not to even consider the proposal put forward by the government of the Republic of Sierra Leone. I will forever commend you for the strong stance you took in fighting hard and making it possible for the privatisation of the SLGS. It is in the same vein that I implore you to stand up and protect the integrity of the AWMS and the Anglican Diocese of Freetown. History will forever judge you if peradventure the school should be relocated and the site be utilized for a market as proposed by the government. Perhaps, you should suggest to the government to rather relocate the traders than relocate the school. I am also surprised by the government’s statement that the area occupied by the school has become an unsuitable environment for the pursuit of academic excellence. The conclusion one can draw from such a statement is that people living in that area should not be given the opportunity to pursue their goals in such a distinguished and established institution. As we remember you in our prayers for God’s guidance in handling the matter, please be reminded of the first two lines of the AWMS school song:
‘We want to build on a firm foundation on the rock of integrity;
We want to set a good example of truth and loyalty’.
May this be a time to show that you can stand up for the truth and demonstrate your integrity to uphold the tenets and vision of the founding mothers and fathers of the AWMS. Yours in Christ, Egerton D. C. Hingston (Dr.). Lecturer, Geological Sciences Geological Sciences University of KwaZulu-Natal (C) Politico 14/02/13
