By Frank Rai
A longtime educationist in Lae city has been farewell in a small but significant ceremony by staff and board members of the Integrated Christian School (ICS) in Lae last week.
Founder of the ICS Gabriel Waine was officially released by the school to contest the 2012 National General Elections in his home province in Chimbu.
Mr Waine who had been advocating on the LEM Phonics education curriculum in the country with more than 100 schools ranging from elementary, primary, high school and secondary school in 15 provinces will retire for politics.
The phonics education system is used all around the world and it was adopted and incorporated by Mr Waine for ICS schools around the country in 1999.
After 12-years with the school, Mr Waine has decided to contest in the upcoming 2012 National General Election in Chimbu and to mark his retirement, a party was thrown by the school last Saturday.
Families and friends from Chimbu, working and living in Lae city gathered at Speedway where the school is located and shared their thoughts with sharing of the feast.
“Mr Waine started the school with 11 students and now it has grown from strength to strength with more than 1, 000 students and 500 teachers all around the country. If he (Mr Waine) can start from a small thing, I believe this would be an opportunity for him to show his potential to the people of Chimbu,” school principle John Kainem said.
Mr Kainem added that the human resource sector was vital for Chimbu province as it did not have natural resources to bring tangible services into the rural communities.
He said since Mr Waine was an advocate on the human resource sector, it was proper for him to contest the election so that he would build up the human resource sector that has been lacking over the years.
Board chairman of the school Utao tora also said Mr Waine was a ‘man with lion heart and elephant brain,’ citing that he was strong enough to make dreams come true.
Meanwhile, Mr Waine thanked those who were always with him during those hard times to set
up the school through out the country and thus made it happened.
“This had been my training ground. I build the school from nothing, not even a donor or government funding for the last 12-years. Now I have the qualification, experience and know-how to deliver vital services,” Mr Waine said.