By Ekena Wesley

The University of Liberia, as a "symbol of light in darkness", must have Suffered severely as several other institutions in the country as a result of 14 years of sheer madness imposed on our country in the name of liberation. We will be compelled to see and access diverse analysis as to the cause for going to war after all, but in the end whatever our dispositions, no change would have emerged without the uncertainty we witnessed in this land.

We need no specialist to inform us that when the University crumbles, this country will go haywire and the future of our young people will be bleak. A war was fought on this soil that rampaged our country so unimaginably. It affected, weakened and uprooted every fabric of our society to say the least. We need not revisit the trappings and untold misery that occasioned our country when war struck.

This country cannot for any second afford to see a terrible mistake that has the potential to strangulate our quest for higher education. If Liberia must progress in order to practically respond to the changing dynamics of an effective society, it behooves us to do everything humanly necessary to prioritize a truly functional university system. Now, folks, you've got to spare us any wrath - that in spite of our somewhat narrow-thinking, we have not lost sight of the fact that there are other universities or institutions of higher learning in the nation.

Indeed all of our higher institutions of learning in the country are making great strides to provide sound direction for a wholesome prosperous nation. Great men and women have got to penetrate the solid walls of our various universities to add flavor, color and taste to the polity, in terms of its revival and renewal. No thesis in the area of education in Liberia can ever be seen as complete in the absence of ideas geared towards adequately empowering the University of Liberia.

Arguably, teachers or call it faculty staff, are not the end in itself as it were in this equation folks. It is about the totality of an embodiment that will enrich such institutions in view of its relevance and viability to our beloved nation. No learning environment can be divorced of an appropriate environment that must inform a holistic atmosphere that will influence congeniality. This is all the reason why we must commend the Government of The People's Republic of China that has come in to fine-tune architecturally the Fendell Campus of the University of Liberia. At a groundbreaking ceremony in Monrovia - we saw on display a model of what we are to expect soon. Good news for our country, especially so at a time when the University of Liberia is in dire need of all the assistances so necessary.

China has always demonstrated passion and growing commitment to reach out developmentally to African countries. We mean from Cape to Cairo. No one in his right frame of mind can attribute what the Chinese seek to do at so critical a juncture as an attempt to colonize this country or any country for that matter. We see an effort by the Chinese government aimed at mutual partnership with a view to strengthening a bond of ties.

The model, although not precisely designed as the China Foreign Affairs University in Beijing, bears similar identity as the layout. We are particularly honored that China can stand beside Liberia per such worthy project. We can clearly confess that the Fendell Campus of the University is poised for transformation that inevitably typifies the icon of "Light in Darkness". The China Foreign Affairs University emboldens an immaculate constitution of superb brilliance by all indications.

We cannot describe in our Liberianness any phraseology to aptly tell the Chinese commitment in this direction. No doubt, we can say that China like any other partner in our recovery efforts, has graciously engraved her name into the history books of this country judging by the genuine and sincerely outcomes being made manifest in our cemented relationship.

Uniquely, the good people of this country owe it to their Chinese counterparts in the form of gratitude for the enormous contributions the People's Republic of China continues to make towards our reconstruction drive. China shall go on record and in history as a meaningful partner dedicated to helping in the development of a University City. Yes, our Chinese friends will be remembered for sincerity in this partnership.

Our compatriots will have an opportunity to enjoy learning in, not only a modern facility, but a serene environment befitting the aura of a University. They will be comfortably and conveniently housed, least to mention their lectures halls while the faculty staff will enjoy the ambience necessary to uplift their human spirits and arouse their passion and sensitivity to impart knowledge. It is no gainsaying that sometimes an environment helps to aid a learning process. We are bound to see that happen at the University of Liberia amidst the practical involvement of the Chinese Government.

Liberians from all walks of life will undoubtedly stand to their feet in appreciation of this latest development. We all want the best for our Premier University. We want our children to have better education. So true! But when the condition is unpalatable - then we have reasons to be concerned. That is where China came in to fill the gap. China, we must remember, continues to be our true friend.

We call on our University folks to engage in research ? scientific in content and form ? that will not make the institution simply an arena of knowledge transfer, but a center for the development and evolution of brilliant ideas to position us for real progress in the 21st century. While there must be other priorities, we want to call on the Chinese to begin looking into the situation involving Tubman College of Science & Technology in Harper, Maryland County. We want to see the institution totally rehabilitated to give this country some of the best engineers ever imagined.

WELL DONE CHINA!

Source: Heritage