The scriptures say when you dream, dream big. That way, you can work harder to achieve your dream. Those who dream small will not put in as much effort as the big dreamers. Nations cannot afford to dream anything short of magnanimous for the people. The newly-structured University of Rwanda is not any further from what a grand vision should be.But a magnanimous dream can be lost in space if it is not pursued with the efforts and seriousness it deserves, much still, if the desirable collective voice is lost in doldrums and pessimism.Tuesday’s presidential appointment of the board and administrators of the University of Rwanda, a new all-inclusive higher institution of learning, has set the ball rolling. It is now in our court. And as we welcome the University Chancellor, Dr Mike O’Neal and his team of eminent scholars, academicians and administrators, we need to bear in mind that they are just servants at the helm who need our selfless and undivided efforts to succeed.Like we embraced our nation and brought it back to life from the ashes of 1994, we can do it again, as long as we keep the national pride that we are known for—selfless and undivided contribution to nation building—burning. Let us embrace the University of Rwanda like a mother embraces a baby and nurses it. Let us remember that the struggle to raise this baby is not as easy as it seems. We should set the pace and let the rest follow.Universities and other institutions in the merger should work toward this common goal.Chancellor O’Neal and his team have no room for laxity. The task at hand is enormous. By accepting the mandate bestowed upon them by President Paul Kagame, they have given their shoulders to the nation’s education dream.Tomorrow, let Rwanda be on the record for starting an all-inclusive national university that regional and other African countries can emulate. The University of Rwanda is a national pride.
