During a recent visit to the Rev. Ernst Bohnet Primary and Secondary Schools in Koidu Town, Kono District, an educational institution established by the Love One Another Campaign (LOAC), on Thursday 6th January 2022, the Headmaster Mr. Desmond Robert informed this medium in an exclusive interview that since its establishment in 2002/03, after the bloody civil war they have created a lot of impact in the community through the preaching of LOVE messages leading to peaceful coexistence in the communities around.
He also informed this medium that the mission has been awarding scholarships to both staff and pupils, some of which are now in universities, with one presently enrolled at the College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences in Freetown adding that two-thirds of the pupils from disadvantaged and poor backgrounds have benefitted from these scholarships and that currently, the school has over five hundred registered pupils on role.
According to Mr. Desmond Robert, unlike pupils of other schools in the community, LOAC pupils are disciplined, that there are no cliques in the school and that parents are consulted regularly for the academic advancement of their children he asserted and appealed for the construction of more buildings as accommodation is their major challenge.
He also stated that if the new two-storey building that is currently under construction is completed, it would be the best around the community as it would add value and prestige to the school, called for the fencing of the school compound to prevent the pupils from moving out of the school compound during school hours, provision of furniture for the new building, a canteen, more trained and qualified teachers for the Nursery and Primary Schools as well as scholarships for the disadvantaged like children of amputees and war wounded.
Mr. Desmond Roberts further revealed that the community gave about three acres of land to LOAC to train children who were demobilized, disarmed and reintegrated into society after the civil war by empowering them with skills such as carpentry and masonry, disclosed that the between 10-15 trainees at the skills training center after the war later constructed the other school buildings and that they can now boast of a Primary, Junior and Senior Secondary Schools, a technical and vocational training center for girls, a nursery school all of which are doing well underscoring that their students are the best in terms of discipline.
Mr. Roberts appealed to government to come to the aid of the school with the payment of teachers salaries, as only three out of the between 14-16 teachers are on government payroll while the rest are community teachers paid by LOAC adding that the Le. 1 million per term government subvention calculated as Le10, 000 per pupil is grossly inadequate and commended government for providing teaching and learning materials to the school, especially for the core subjects.
He lamented that the solar panels for the water purification plant were stolen, but have been replaced, that the plant is working effectively as before, stating that even though the well is cleaned and dug dipper regularly, it dries up between February/March every year
According to the Headmaster, plans are also underway for the School Management Committee (SMC) of the school to establish a catering, hairdressing and other skills training to the technical/vocational center but that funds are not available for which he appealed for help from well wishers, pointing out that the equipment are expensive and boasted that some of the first set of trainees are now contractors.
He continued that the relationship between the SMC and school is cordial as they are working as a team, that training programs are organized for members of the SMC to know their roles and responsibilities, that the SMC meets twice a term-at the beginning and end, in addition to emergency meetings when the need arises and to address emerging issues.
Mr. Desmond Roberts furthered that regular meetings are also held with teachers for the academic and infrastructural development of the school as well as to discuss corporal punishment and that members of the SMC visits the school regularly to keep themselves abreast with developments in the school.
On LOAC campaigns in the Koidu community, he said they preach to people to learn to live and work together, that there is more than enough resources in this small country for all Sierra Leoneans, that we must now look forward to the light that has emerged at the end of the dark tunnel underscoring that we must display a high regard for the truth, be honest and give our utmost as we offer ourselves in the service of Sierra Leone reiterating that above all, Sierra Leoneans must learn to love one another with Godly love.
He continued that they preach to the communities that this is the time to be sober-minded and objectively identify weaknesses in the country’s system and try to amend them without bias that this must be done quickly, if we, the present adult literate Sierra Leoneans at home and abroad, were to avoid total condemnation by the next and subsequent generations. He underscored that they also called on the community to pray that God opens the eyes of the people so that they can recognize the real enemies of the nation and prayed that God also helps all Sierra Leoneans to build a new country.
Dilating on agape love, he articulated that a genuine, real or unconditional love involves caring for the happiness of others without expecting anything personal in return, putting others first and caring for their highest good, that agape love is the cohesive force that binds families and people of diverse ethnicities together recalling that agape love can be compared to salt in a soup or cement in a building.
“The absence of love has made room for many ills in Sierra Leone such as child labor, domestic violence, injustice, unfair trade, (local and foreign), human trafficking, lack of integrity and corruption among many other vices. Most of these ills have the spirit of exploitation at its roots. I am appealing to Sierra Leoneans, at home and abroad, to love one another as God loves them,” the headmaster concluded.