The occasion was the Twenty Third (23rd) Anniversary of Radio Mankneh, FM 95.1, celebrated with an Awards Night and a Fund-raising Event at the Old Makeni Town Hall with the Chief Administrator of the Makeni City Council (MCC), William Alpha, serving as the chairperson. Attendees came from all walks of life including Members of Parliament, Board Members of Radio Mankneh, representatives from the media, representatives from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and dignitaries from Makeni and the Northern Region among others.
Speaking about the atmosphere that characterized the occasion, the victorious NCD Commissioner, Bai John Conteh, noted it was generally good with a live band performance that saw Sulaiman Sheriff also known as Steady Bongo thrilling the crowd that was fairly large as the venue, Old Makeni Town Hall, on Saturday, March 18, 2017, was filled to capacity. He did not mince his words when he expressed appreciation for the award in the category of Best Commissioner in the Northern Region noting that it was his first as a commissioner with the significant realization that it is coming from the media.
The Commissioner was very quick in acknowledging the support of the staff in the Northern Region office of NCD with the realization that they contributed their quota to the successful outcome of that Awards Night with each staff in attendance and at the same time inviting as many people as possible to create a cheerful atmosphere. He also observed that the staff is very happy for the accolade bestowed on him whilst noting that they are still sharing messages about the occasion on the social media.
In reporting the award to the Commission at a Management meeting on Wednesday, April 5, 2017, the Commissioner commended the NCD Chairman, Dr. Abubakar H. Kargbo, for the opportunity to be identified. With gratitude to God Almighty, the Commissioner has dedicated the Award to his late parents, Rev. Brima Conteh and Ya Adama Conteh, and His Excellency the President, Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma. “It is dedicated to my parents because they gave me life when they introduced me to the Lord Jesus, my Lord and Savior, an education alongside the virtues of hard work, integrity and dedication to a purpose”, he affirmed. “It is dedicated, also, to HE the President as an appreciation to him for identifying me out of the millions of Sierra Leoneans, regardless of my age, and be given this respected opportunity to contribute to the development of our motherland”, he further explained.
As a future outlook, the Commissioner has expressed the wish to continue working hard noting that he would want to work more closely with the people in the North, not just in Makeni, but all the districts in the Northern Region. He also commented on the many challenges inherent in providing civic education to the people in his region as most people don’t understand the workings of government thus the need for more civic education by way of emphasizing the importance of the National Commission for Democracy (NCD).
Expressing his appreciation for the accolade bestowed on the Northern Region Commissioner, the NCD Chairman, Dr. Abubakar H. Kargbo, has remarked that it did not come as a surprise as the Commissioner has always been hardworking with the accolade proving the point. Additionally, he commented that the gesture on the part of Radio Mankneh, FM 95.1, is good and that as a young man, the Commissioner has not shirked his responsibilities, but has been delivering thus the public recognition and commendation. He also used the opportunity to appeal to the other Commissioners of NCD to emulate the good example of Commissioner Bai John Conteh so that they too could win accolades on behalf of NCD.
Meanwhile, on behalf of Radio Mankneh, FM 95.1, the Award of Best Commissioner for the North was awarded to Commissioner Bai John Conteh by Sahr Gbanga, Proprietor of Provincial Times Newspaper, for support to the media and for promoting good governance in the Northern Region.
