Yesterday, residents of Kinoya in Nasinu converged on Velau ground.
It was a meeting filled with emotions.
It had a purpose and there was a concerted effort to drive that message through.
When all things are said and done, it is when residents come together for a common purpose, and are focused on a common goal, that a sense of ownership slowly inches forth.
That is when there is a reason to do good, and contribute to lifting the standard of life.
It is a goal worth contributing to.
Like some other neighbourhoods in and around the Capital City, Kinoya was not immune to thuggish behaviour, and criminal activities.
It isn’t immune to the advent of the digital age either, and to the influence of drugs.
Recent street fights in suburbs of Suva by gangs of youths certainly aren’t doing anything good for the image of our young men and women.
But these are facts of life in most suburbs anyway.
It’s not a walk in the park either for the police to deal with.
However, deep within the psyche of Kinoya as a common place of residence for thousands of people, is a sense of appreciation and gratitude for life itself, and how the boundaries have changed so to speak, and how this suburb has slowly been forced to embrace development both in infrastructure and the local economy.
The president of the Kinoya Pioneers Viniana Seru makes a point about an upgrade in how people of Kinoya can think and contribute to improve their lives.
They want to construct a multipurpose court on Velau ground targeted at youths.
The Kinoya Pioneers mini day was organised to raise funds yesterday and to connect the community, targeting the support base.
Ms Seru said the community was divided into four clusters and they had a target to raise $200 each.
“We thought of doing something for the youths and for Kinoya, volleyball is one of the games that is loved by most of our youths,” she said.
This is it!
Such initiatives deserve praise.
They deserve acknowledgement and they deserve support.
For deeply intertwined with such initiatives sits the motivation to bring communities together, focused on a common goal.
The challenge now is to embrace as many residents as possible.
That will mean creating awareness and nurturing a sense of community spirit that involves every resident of this fast growing area.
That should be encouraged around the country.
For the people of Kinoya, led by Ms Seru, it is now about taking ownership of their community, strengthening their support base, and initiating change.
Now that is a refreshing turn of events!
We acknowledge what the residents of Kinoya have started and wish them well!
