CV Nunes Primary student beats odds to sit NGSA

By Mohanlall Suelall

Every young child just wants to be carefree and live life one step at a time. However, this is not the case of young Manesha Lall. She has to be constantly worrying if she will be able to attend school and pursue her dreams of entering the medical profession. The 11-year-old is different from many of her peers at the CV Nunes Primary School on the Essequibo Coast, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam). Both her parents have died within a short space of time and she now lives with her elder siblings at their Richmond Housing Scheme home.
Manesha recently sat the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) examinations, but her journey to get there is one that was exceptional. In 2016, her mother, Anita Persaud died leaving her motherless. It was not even two years later when her father passed away, losing his battle with cancer.

She is yet to get over the deaths of her parents, but has been working exceptionally hard to make them proud. She is hopeful of passing her NGSA examinations and getting placed at a good secondary school so as to fulfil her dream of becoming a doctor.
Young Manesha said that the driving force behind her desire to become a doctor is that she lost both of her parents at a tender age and her only wish was she could have helped them. Now, all she wants to do is have the knowledge to be able to save lives.
Manesha said that after the death of both of her parents, she had to live with her two elder sisters and one brother and many days they could not have afforded to send her to school. Their resources were limited and she would have to stay away from school. But, she says, now whether they could afford it or not, she is making sure that she goes to school to achieve her dreams and help take her family out of poverty.
The resilient young lady said that as the youngest child in the family, she is making sure she takes up the opportunities that her elder siblings could not have. Her siblings could not have completed their schooling and chase after their dreams owing to poverty. She is hopeful that her parents are guiding her and with hard work and sacrifices, she will be able to conquer.
After witnessing the suffering of her parents, Manesha said that she knew the pain of parting with those you love the most and as such, she developed the strength, courage, and determination to work harder toward achieving her goals. She believes that while her life story is sad, it gives her the opportunity to work harder than normal and makes her stronger than most persons her age. She is hopeful that at the end of this, she is able to come out victorious and can be a role model for other young people in similar situations.
“Poverty is hard, but it is helping me to become a stronger person and I have the self-confidence, determination, and courage to make a change for the better. I want to make sure that we have a better life and I am determined to get that. I will work harder than anybody else. I will study harder and qualify myself. I will make sure that I fulfil my dream of becoming a doctor and helping those people who need to be helped,” she said.
“I know what poverty is. No one cares for you, what you live like. It is like you are invisible and people look down on you. They does scorn you and want trample on you. But you have the power to rise and break away from poverty by becoming serious about your dreams and making sure you follow them.”