GBARNGA –– The United Kpelleh Association of Liberia (TUKAL) with support from the Consul General of the Republic of Liberia in Istanbul, the Republic of Turkey Hon. Se-la-hat-tin Yilmaz during the weekend broke ground for the construction of a full-fledged High School and a public library in Gbarnla, Suakoko District.
The cost of the school project is said to be a little over $200,000 United States Dollars.
Giving an overview of the ceremony, the Director of Project at TUKAL, Madam Laura Kiekpo, said a documentary prepared by the director-general of the Liberia News Agency Mr. Kwame Oldpa Weeks through the effort of Mrs. Sue Larmouth Gaykorkpa displayed the suffering school going-kids in region encountered daily motivated the association to have advocated for the construction of a modern school.
She said the after viewing the video, a four-man delegation set up to visit the town observed that the lone elementary school was in a dilapidated condition, while students were seen sitting on a dusty floor struggling to obtain a quality education.
The visit by the delegates further established that the institution didn’t have instructional materials and staff.
She said as part of efforts to prepare the future generation, they could not sit and see the kids of Gbarnla and its environs suffer as the result of poor learning facilities.
During the occasion, members of the United Kpelleh Association of Liberia (TUKAL) also gowned and presented certificates of appreciation to Hon. Yilmaz for his many humanitarian undertakings in Africa.
For his part, the Consul General of the Republic of Liberia in Istanbul, the Republic of Turkey Hon. Se-la-hat-tin Yilmaz, thanked TUKAL for the initiation of the project, pledging the fullest support of his family and the President of Turkey H.E. Recep Tayyip Erdogan towards the projects.
When completed, the proposed government high school will be named after the President of Turkey H.E. Recep Tayyip Erdogan while the Library will be named in honor of Selehattin Yilmaz and his family.
Citizens and school kids in Gbarnla and its environs expressed gratitude to the sponsors of the project.
“We are very happy for this project because our children have been suffering for so long. You see, these children sit in the dust just to learn ABC AND 1 2 3 for tomorrow, so we want to tell TUKAL thank you plenty for thinking about them” some of the citizens said.
The Gbarnla’s inhabitants also pledged their commitment to collaborating with the construction team.
The groundbreaking ceremony brought together several government officials, including educational stakeholders and local leaders in Bong County.