Promise Scholar Musa: "Dreams die when opportunities are absent"

Promise Scholar Musa Massaquoi recently graduated Njala University with a Bachelor of Science with Honors in Social Work.  Musa lost his mother at a very young age and was raised by his father, a subsistence farmer, in a village near Bo. Education was always a problem, but he persevered through the obstacles posed by extreme poverty and achieved his dream of graduating from university.

Child Rescue Centre Case Manager Victor Kanu talked to Musa about his journey to achieve his dream of getting an education.  

"Since I was schooling in the village, things were very challenging for me.  I lost my mother when I was in Class 2.  I continued to struggle until I sat to the National Primary School Examination (NPSE), wherein I scored very good grades.  Upon enrollment into Junior Secondary, my education became a problem.  My father depended on subsistence farming and had other children and relatives to care for.

I was driven from school for not paying the fees.  I was really ashamed and felt dehumanized in the eyes of my colleagues. 

In JSS 1, I was driven from school for not paying the fees.  I was really ashamed and felt dehumanized in the eyes of my colleagues.  It was through the merciful grace of God that I was noticed by the CRC during their assessment.  I was recommended by one of the church members, and later enrolled into the program.  

As a recipient of a Promise Scholarship, the CRC created several positive impacts to help me actualize my dream of success towards my education. The CRC changed my life through their moral ethics and Christian values, helping me become obedient, dedicated, honest, open-mind, humble, and hardworking, both in academic and other facets of life.

​I learned good judgment, responsibility, and good study habits. The CRC trained and guided me to be an upstanding citizen with moral values, trust, and dedication to serving my people.
 
I am convinced that life without the support of other people is of no importance. This will really come to play when that individual is yet to achieve his or her dream, and their chances are limited. This is very common in Sierra Leone. I happened to be one of those many children that felt the pinch of poverty in Sierra Leone. The CRC saw fit to invest in me, as I went from high school to university.

And today I am one of the flag bearers of change in Sierra Leone and the world at large. This opportunity brings me to the forefront of building my human resource capacity. This is very essential in developing any state. Becoming a social worker today is a blessing in disguise. And if there are any other humanitarian organizations that have the same vision in Sierra Leone, they are going to make a sound meaning in our society and the world at large.

Dreams die slowly when opportunities are absent. 

The CRC provided financial assistance for relevant learning materials, supported lodging for the first year of my university education, counseling support, and medical services.  
 
My advice to colleagues, brothers and sisters: to focus on their academic work to maintain this wonderful opportunity, as many others are yearning to enjoy such a chance.  They should be dedicated, hardworking, obedient, God-fearing and honest in all their undertakings, and they should think of their background, so as to step forward to completely change the lives of their families and communities of origin. They might be the only hope."