He was responding to a letter that was last weekend sent to all diplomats by the Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, giving them notice to return back to Sierra Leone.

It could be recalled that a serious and embarrassing row broke up two months ago, between the newly-elected government of President Julius Maada Bio and the country’s diplomatic staff based overseas, following the government’s public announcement that all diplomatic staff were effectively out of work and must return home.

But since then, and after much protest by the diplomatic staff about the non-payment of their end of service contractual entitlements, their differences with the government appeared to have been settled.

But it seems that both sides are now locked in disagreement over what has been paid and arrangements about the return home of the diplomats, who allege that the full cost of their repatriation have not been met.

The government on the other hand says it has paid the reasonable cost of their return and will not be held responsible for any further financial liability pertaining to their return home.