By Precious D. Freeman
Graduates from the Amos C. Sawyer College of Sciences and Humanities at the University of Liberia (UL) were urged to sustain the peace in the country because it is the foundation for creating a sustainable human society and equitable development.
Keynote Speaker, Asatu Bah Kenneth added that the national peace, security, growth and development must be firmly anchored on the tenets of peace building, which is the respect for the rule of law regardless of one’s status, loyalty, or belief and equality in treatment without reference to a person’s gender.
She made the remarks yesterday at the 103rd commencement convocation of the University on the Fendall Campus, in Louisiana where candidates were presented for undergraduate degrees at the Amos C. Sawyer and David Stratz- Sinje Colleges.
The keynote speaker added that right now, some individual’s rights are still being violated while rape, domestic violence, sexual exploitation and abuse are on the increase and there are still instances of sex-for-grades, miss-trust, power greed, disrespect, among others.
She mentioned that Liberia is at the cross roads in the midst of the preparation for elections in October mentioning, “I want to use this medium to call upon every Liberian to know that we all have to be law abiding and do all we can to maintain the peace, stability and development.”
Speaking on the topic; “Peace and Security, an Indispensable Element for the Growth and Development of Liberia,” Madam Kenneth intoned that Liberians cannot live in peace when some people strongly believe that they are more Liberians than others, which is a serious challenge.
“Most people are angry over nothing; we need to manage ourselves in order to exhibit peaceful co-existence and do away with collective guilt or guilt by association,” she said.
“As good citizens there is a serious need for us to adopt a spirit of forgiveness and thank God for where we are as a nation today. There are challenging circumstances, yet have produced quality leaders that continue to play key roles in ensuring peace and security in our country,” the keynote speaker said.
However, she maintained that since the signing of the Accra Peace Record in 2003 in Accra, Ghana, Liberia has and is still enjoying peace and stability for over 20 years.
“I shall stress that the peace we are enjoying today and cherishing was made possible through several meetings and other positive initiatives, mostly at the leadership of the women of Liberia, and your humble servant as was the case of 2003,” she said.
She maintained that if Liberia must change the narratives from fragile peace to everlasting peace, they must first reconcile their differences as Liberians and forgive each other by taking complete ownership in shifting situations that remain a challenge to the peace and security in Liberia.
She also encouraged the graduates to be nice to people they meet on their way up, because those are the same people they will meet on their way down.
Meanwhile, the main commencement with an expectancy of at least 1, 500 candidates in different degrees which kicked off yesterday continues today with the joint commencement for candidates from the colleges of Agriculture and Forestry, Science and Engineering with NaFAA’s boss, Emma Glasco, serving as guest speaker.
Commencement for the A. Romeo Horton College of Business and Public Administration will be held on Wednesday, May 31, while the 103rd convocation will conclude with the commencement of candidates from the graduate and professional schools on Friday, June 2, 2023 respectively.
