During the ‘meet and greet’ session preceeding the Kono conference held at Aiah Fanday’s residence in Upper Marlboro, Maryland last night, it was mostly hugs and kisses among Kono compatriots. Smiles abound! Oh! Even those that have been threatening hell on earth should the only female Kono Minister in the current government, Minister of Lands, Diana Konomanyi be given the podium during Kono conference, were giving her Bear Hugs. What lovely sight it was to see and how I wish that would be the atmosphere at the conference hall tomorrow and till thy kingdom come. Day dreaming?

Having the nose of a Journalist, I sensed that there is still no public agenda telling us the format the Kono Conference will take. I hear it has been a herculean task for the chairman of the occasion and the Organizing Committee of the conference to arrive at a mutually agreed upon and conclusive agenda. Shocking? Does that ring a bell as to how deep rooted the Kono unity or disunity is? Which begs the question, were the hugs and smiles, photo upset all at the ‘meet and greet’ genuine?
As we, Konos, yearn to find lasting solutions and a way forward for our district, it is my conviction that we should be honest with ourselves and do a detailed analysis of what issues divide us and how we should bridge the gap. In finding lasting solutions, papering over the cracks is not the way to go. Venting, but in a respectable manner is one of the hallmarks of conflict resolution, which, in my view, should be encouraged. And I hope we can accommodate each other. We all cannot have or share the same political ideology. However, we should learn to respect each other’s political views and desist from badmouthing one another even when we disagree. Cyber Thuggery should not be used as a tool to further divide us. Let our smiles and Bear Hugs be genuine and not hypocritical. I learnt growing up in Kono Spark that ‘Kono eh Kono fah’ (A Kono does not kill his kinsman) …can we replicate that? The world is watching! Sierra Leone is watching!!