By Nelson Manneh St Peters Technical Junior and Senior Secondary School on Monday, 25 May 2015 celebrated African Liberation Day in the form of a symposium held at the school hall in Lamin. Speaking on the occasion, the vice principal of the schoo,l Mr. Gomez, described the day as great for the school since it is the first time they are commemorating it. Mr. Essa Njie, a former student of the University of The Gambia presented a paper on the theme “Towards African Liberation; The Reality, Challenges and Way Forward “. Mr. Njie said the 25th of May is a day that is being commemorated by countries in the African Continent to mark ‘African Liberation Day’. It is a moment when all peoples of African descent whether they live in Africa, Europe and America or in any other part of the world try to reflect on the liberation struggles of the founders of the modern Africa nation –states and carve a better way forward for the people of Africa as envisaged in the pan-Africa movement. The day according to him, is said to have been founded in 1958 on the occasion of the first conference of independent African states held in Accra, Ghana and attended by eight independent African states. He explained that the 15 April was declared African Freedom Day to mark each year the onward progress of the liberation movement. It also symbolises the determination of the people of Africa to free themselves from foreign or colonial hegemony and exploitation and a move towards total freedom and independence, he said. He noted that 17 countries in continental Africa won their independence and 1960 was proclaimed the ‘Year of Africa’. “Now if Africans are to celebrate African Liberation Day , there are some questions we need to answer. Why are we celebrating it when African citizens in South Africa are being attacked and killed, some burnt alive as a result of xenophobia, what are we to celebrate when uncountable numbers of our young and energetic men and women are losing their lives on the Mediterranean high seas,” he remarked. Mr. Njie stressed that over fifty years of the liberation struggle; the African governments cannot provide employment opportunities for their youth who are at times left with no option but to embark on the perilous journey to Europe. Mr. Ebrima Ceesay, a senior teacher at Batrop Senior Secondary School, made a presentation on the difference between African Union and OAU. He highlighted the main aims and objectives of both the OAU and AU which, he said, is basically to achieve greater unity and solidarity between the African countries and the people of Africa. Amie Bah Jallow, a representative from the Suna Institution of Science and Technology, explained to the pupils the importance of technology in the educational system. She used the opportunity to highlight some of the courses her institution provides which amongst others include IT Training services, software development, architectural design printing and privet WASSCE classes. The principal of the school Fr. David Jarju thanked the guest speakers for what he said are “the words of wisdom” they shared with the students. ]]>
