Cape Mount County Education Officer, Elijah G. Freeman, has alerted school principals in Cape Mount to observe National Flag Day every August 24 in the region.
During the August 24 ceremony, Mr. Freeman emphasized the importance of this national duty for all citizens.
He warned that any public schools failing to adhere to this mandate would face penalties.
Additionally, he reiterated that the graduation fee for public schools is $5,000.00 and $100.00 USD for private schools.
Mr. Freeman advised principals to maintain professionalism while on duty and avoid undermining the educational system.
The District Education Officer, Johannes F. Belle, Jr., also spoke at the event.
He highlighted that August 24 is a symbolic and cultural day of Liberia, holding significance in the lives of over a million Liberians. National Flag Day is a celebrated cultural holiday across Liberia.
Mr. Belle, the Garwular District Education Officer, explained that the commemoration of the Liberian Flag was adopted on August 24, 1847, during the establishment of the New Republic called Liberia. To the Liberian people, the flag represents not just a flag but also power and hope.
He stressed the importance of the flag, as Liberia began as a project of the American Colonization Society in the 19th Century.
During this period, thousands of free-born black slaves from America and the Atlantic Ocean relocated to Liberia for a better life, prosperity, and freedom.
Mr. Belle asserted that despite America not recognizing Liberia’s independence, it remains the first independent country in Africa.
He encouraged school principals to observe National Flag Day every year as a symbolic day for all Liberians.
Othello J. Nyumah, a student from Robertsport High School, read the Proclamation during the event.
He described the making of the national flag as a historically significant event for Liberia, symbolizing pride and dignity within the country. The flag was designed and produced by a committee of ladies led by Mr. Susannah Lewis, a talented and visionary citizen of Liberia.
The national flag consists of six red stripes and five alternating white stripes, totaling eleven.
These stripes represent the eleven sandals of the Declaration of Independence of Liberia.
The blue field in the upper left corner of a rectangular form features a single white star in the center, symbolizing Liberia as the only independent state on the African continent.
The red color signifies the blood shed in the struggle for independence, white represents the purity of the minds of the fallen bearers towards each other, and blue represents the dark continent of Africa.
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