LIFE was not that easy for Hipson Homai Aiyopa after losing his mum and dad, but he fought through the odds overcame the challenges and accepted the fact that everything happens for a reason. Hipson, 27, from the Tepi local level government area in Hela, is the fourth born in a family of five. He comes from a polygamous family which his mum (Roselyn Aiyopa) was the third of eight wives. He spent most of his life growing up with his father (Aiyopa Lape) than with his mum. Aiyopa was adopted when he was 11 and has been looked after by parents Sawi Sitapai and Tabitha Suwae. He graduated from the University of Papua New Guinea with a bachelor’s degree in political science and is looking forward to doing his honours. He explained that him graduating with a degree was a rare and special moment, especially coming from his village. “In the family, I am the second child to graduate with a degree after my big sister graduated in computer science.” Hipson was born and raised in the nation’s capital and begun his early education at Philip Aravure Primary School at Gerehu from 2005 to 2013. “My real mother passed away when I was in Grade Eight and we had been living with our father,” he said.
“In 2014 and 2015, I completed my Grades Nine and 10 at St Charles Lwanga Secondary School and got selected to Sogeri National High School to do my Grades 11 and 12 in 2016-2017. “While I was doing my Grade 11, my real dad passed away and this really affected me. “I became mentally and psychologically unstable and I did not do my best in school. “During my education journey, I always wanted to make my dad proud and when he passed away, it became the most devastating and challenging year for me. “When I didn’t get accepted to study political science at UPNG after completing Grade 12, many of my family and relatives said that I was a failure. But I took their discrimination as motivation and carried on to pursue my studies,” he said. “I applied through the UPNG Open Campus in 2019 and was accepted to study political science through external mode. “Life was very challenging for me and my younger siblings but we were supported by my adopted parents and my big sister. “I struggled along the way, and that was my biggest challenge. “There were moments where I felt like giving up and didn’t want to further my education, but I realised that I was too young to endure such pressures. “Sometimes I would cry out to God and always pray and ask him why I am going through such hardship in my life. “As a young man, going through a lot of struggle has never been easy but I always accepted the fact that everything happens for a reason,” he added. Aiyopa being a student and not working struggles on to play the role of a parent to his younger siblings by providing for their needs and wants in any way possible. He would sometimes go out his way to make ends meet for his younger siblings. “I dido not have a job but I budget whatever I earned to assist my family and that’s how I manage to help them. “One of the source of income that helped us through our survival is a rent house property left by our father,” he said. “I manage to sell out the property and the income that we received was used to assist us,” he said. Aiyopa said the reason he took up political science was because he believed that the world runs through politics and it was the core aspect of a nation. He said that another reason was to use his skills and knowledge to help bring change to his village where there is a lot of tribal fighting and not much development and help for his people in the village. “Most of the tribal fights occur in my village and I believe that with my skills and knowledge, I will be able to educate them and tell them of how the world works in a way to enlighten their minds,” he said. Graduating from UPNG and to continue to excel in his education, he wishes to complete his honors and further into masters and PhD. Aiyopa said wanted to be an example to his family and villagers and show them that it pays to keep on trying despite the challenges. “I want to set a benchmark for my younger sibling and the children from rural areas of Hela, especially Tepi LLG area,” he added. “I want to show them that education is the key to success and remind them to focus on what they want to become in life,” he said. The National / PNG Education News Also rea Comments are closed.
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