PONDER MY THOUGHTS – BO SCHOOL: STILL BELOVED @ 120
By Andrew Keili
232news –
Congratulations are in order to Bo School for 120 years of being in existence and contributing immensely to the development of Sierra Leone. British educationist, Sir Leslie Probyn, who founded the school in 1906, would, if he were still alive, marvel at the strides that Bo School has made in various areas of national life-way beyond his initial concept of having a school for the sons of Chiefs. The purpose of the school for the sons of chiefs was not only to give the future rulers of the people a cultural education, but also to give them training in the duties of citizenship and a sense of their obligations to the community. It had initial success in enhancing the ability of our traditional leaders, Paramount Chiefs, to serve their communities, including their effective representation in the pre-independence Protectorate Assembly and even in the Legislative Council. Until the promulgation of the 1947 Constitution, virtually all the Paramount Chiefs representing the Protectorate in the Legislative Council were Old Bo School Boys.
Now we have an Old Bo School boy, 3919 Bio Julius as President. Bo School has not exactly matched Achimota School, the prestigious Ghanaian boarding school known for educating elite African leaders, including four Ghanaian Heads of State (Nkrumah, Akufo-Addo, Rawlings, Mills), former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and Sir Dauda Jawara, former Prime Minister of the Gambia. Someone just reminded me that Saint Edwards produced Sir Albert Margai and President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah. Bo School has however over these past 120 years produced students who have dominated the Civil Service, Judiciary, Legislature, the security forces as well as the Paramount Chieftaincy institution. Needless to state that current Cabinet is not spared the Bo School dominance.
Bo is certainly the place to be this weekend. OBBA members are busy painting the town red (or in these times, green, as red seems to be going out of fashion!). The extended five-day celebrations will entail commissioning of major infrastructure projects, including a new entrance gate and a state-of-the-art Amphitheatre, a Durbar of Paramount Chiefs, the Speech Day and Prize-Giving Ceremony, an AGM and a series of sporting engagements.
In terms of accomplishments over this period of its existence, I can honestly state that Bo School has by its very nature contributed considerably to national cohesion. A school, which from its very onset brought students together from all areas of the protectorate and from various tribes into a boarding home setting that embodied brotherhood can only foster national cohesion. The school has also been renowned for practising political tolerance amongst its membership. OBBA members have contributed significantly to various projects in the school, including infrastructure development and have been instrumental in garnering support from various other sources for the school. They would not let the “Bo School idea” die and the passion they have for their school is beyond compare. It was quite possible for a Form 1 student who completed the school in Up sixth Form to get acquainted with students in fourteen different classes over his Bo School life. The traditional rigours of Bo School life have helped shape many students to become good citizens, imbibing the spirit of servant leadership and being capable of overcoming adversity.
One must however examine some quaint peculiarities of Bo School that have probably resulted in getting its alumni to be wily, tough and resourceful.
Some OBBA members could actually be prime candidates for the International Criminal Court (ICC) because of the way they treated “greeners”. They were expected to be the main source of manual labour for the school. Also, according to one of them, if some seniors found it difficult to sleep, they would call on juniors to “comfort” them. This was a euphemistic term for lying under a bed and pushing it up and down, while the occupant generally felt like a medieval king until he drifted to sleep. “Greeners” were also drilled. This included a series of painful exercises designed to punish them-frog jumping, rolling on the hot tarmac in front of the dining hall, lying on the hot tarmac and pretending to be dead. Foodstuff, especially including “Kanya” and garri were confiscated by seniors. The Senior Prefect together with his assistants lived in splendour with the most important Minister being the Minister of food and nutrition, a right-hand man of the Senior Prefect who controlled the “Kondor”-the sumptuous (some say unhygienic, but the typical Bo School boy would scream “hygiene kafai!” in Mende) that was many a time “doubled”. Undoubtedly the “Kondor” has contributed to the bulging biceps and stomachs of many a Bo School boy. I don’t however subscribe to the view by a detractor that a typical Bo School boy does not appreciate restaurant food after his Bo School experience.
Talk about adversity? Dr. Sama Banya aka Puawui in his autobiography documents his life at Bo school and how the war years in particular helped toughen up he and his colleagues. His story about being one of the instigators of an unsuccessful “Kondor” strike in 1942 would be hilarious if it did not involve the expulsion of the ring leaders. He laments the curtailing of the real rice “kondor” meal to twice a week and substituting with cassava during this period. He writes about how the shortage of toilet paper during the war years resulted in the innovative substitution of dried leaves to use in the pit latrines. The historian Puawui would have been history if the seniors that wanted to punish him did not fish him out of the swimming pool after gulping a fair dose of water as an initiation. He is however proud of how Bo school shaped him and writes in glowing terms about some of the stellar teachers he had at Bo School.
It has just dawned on me that I have so far been writing about Bo school positively as if I admire and like the school and its students. I implore my college mates to be a bit understanding. Even though they are the second-best school in Bo town, this is their anniversary and we should serenade them. Let us give honour to whom honour is due-at least for now!
Let me digress and write about the fierce rivalry between CKC and Bo school during my school days especially in sports.
I recall our sports Master prepared the team to play in a neutral ground at Njala University after two aborted riotous matches in Bo. One sure way of breaking (yes, as in BREAK) Bo School’s “Possible Deen’s” legs was to recruit the largest boy in the school into the football team. “Lewis can charge”, he confidently bragged before the match. The rest is history and I will not reveal the score. One thing I learnt though-Lewis did not get within a yard of “Possible Deen” for the whole of the first half. He however succeeded in creating a few craters with his boot from charging an imaginary opponent!
Whilst I was at Rutile there was a Bo school Boy called Moore, His friends used to provoke him for having being expelled by “Uncle Sheik”, the principal, because of some mix up. Apparently, some Bo school Boys had “broken bounds”-as is their wont, but were caught by the principal in town. He made the announcement at assembly- “Yesterday I caught some boys in town who had broken bounds. I have expelled them. I know of some others and tomorrow, more will go.” On hearing this, Moore who mistakenly thought his name (more for Moore) had been mentioned started pleading, “It was not me alone Sir” and started calling other names. That was how Moore and his friends got expelled from the Bo school.
The rivalry was so intense in athletics that we used to “starve” some of our good athletes who were vertically challenged to qualify for the Junior category (determined by a combination of weight and height). And so, my class mate AM was Junior from Form 1 until he left in Form 5. We would starve him and shave off his hair. One year he actually decreased in height. And Boy! He walloped the Bo School opponent on every occasion in the 100 yards and 200 yards dash.
But, let’s get back to the celebrations. What has Bo school achieved over these past 120 years? I would say plenty. As with any group of people, there may be outliers especially in the present age who may be totally oblivious of the tolerance and national inclusivity which characterised the Bo School boy. As they celebrate their 120th anniversary, let us laud the resourcefulness, good neighbourliness, loyalty and patriotism of the Bo School boy through all the changing scenes of life in Sierra Leone during this period. Long may they continue exhibiting their motto ‘Manners Maketh Man’ in thoughts, words and deeds.
Congratulations, Bo School Boys, OBBA members and supporters in all forms including wives, SCs and the people of Bo. Continue painting the town green!
Ponder my thoughts.
