P.M. awards students scholarships

Five students from southern Belize have been awarded scholarships to study at the University of Belize. On Wednesday, through a special program initiated by Prime Minister Said Musa, the three men and two women will pursue associate degrees at the University of Belize. Rudolfo Shal of Punta Gorda is studying for a degree in social work, Samuel Ack of Laguna Village in the Toledo District is hoping to graduate with a degree in math, while Beverley Vansen, Nathan Young and Abigail Parham, all of Independence Village, are completing degrees in natural resource management. In his address to the students, Prime Minister Musa stressed the need for the young Belizeans to acknowledge their duty to the country’s development.

Prime Minister Said Musa

“I believe we have to start talking some more about duties. And I am saying this for our educational institutions in particular, that we need to be teaching our young people more about their duties. Because it’s all very well and good to talk about the rights of the child, and the child has a right to speak back to the parent and the parent should not slap the child. That’s very well and good, we want to protect child, sure. But what about the rights of the young people, the duties that they owe to persons in authority over them; to their parents, what about the duties that we all owe to each other? Because for every right there is a duty, and we have not been emphasising enough in our society, responsibility. The responsibility we owe to each other, the responsibility we owe to society. And the social responsibility that every student, who goes through U.B., owes to this society of Belize. We need to emphasise that responsibility, otherwise we will lose them.”

During the brief ceremony, officials from the university pointed out that the community can assist the educational institution not only through monetary contributions, but also by investment and patronage to the library.