BY LORETTA BRIGIDIA MANELE
MA’ASINA Ruru is about tribe. In case you don’t understand what the fundamental foundation of Ma’asina Ruru is, it is tribe.
The above statement was made by President of Malaita Ma’asina Forum (MMF), Martin Housanau during an annual general meeting last week.
He had earlier voiced the need to re-strengthen Ma’asina Ruru’s leadership role at the national level, in the communities and even in tribes.
Speaking of tribe, Housanau called on members of the audience who have forgotten their tribes to reconnect with their tribes.
He said their theme “Reconnecting or connecting with the spirit of Ma’asina Ruru” embodies two spirits; the spirit of connecting to their people and the spirit of talking with their tribesmen and women.
Housanau told them that communicating with their tribesmen and tribeswomen is essential in the sense of agreeing upon activities their tribes’ want to carry out.
“This is the flagship of Ma’asina Ruru. Ma’asina Ruru is about tribe. It’s about your tradition and mine. It is about our language”, he said.
Housanau also encouraged them to always stay connected with their tribes even if they are living in the capital.
He added that it has come to a scenario where a number of Solomon Islanders living in Honiara have forgotten their language, more so how to accurately speak their language.
In this regard, Housanau says an indigenous language nowadays is no longer spoken in its purest form and most often families prefer using Pidgin in their homes.
He said this spells out the indication that the social fabric, language, which holds a family or a community together is beginning to wither away.
Housanau emphasized that they must stay connected or reconnect with their tribes in the village because the opposite would mean losing their identity.
