Daryl Ngola Molongisse, 23, is a polite, modest, and soft-spoken young man whose aura emanates peace and calm. His baritone-modulated voice is soothing to the ear, and his calm demeanour will keep you at ease. Daryl has a uniquely great personality.
Daryl is set to graduate from Wisconsin International University College, Ghana with a Bachelor of Business Studies (Marketing) on November 26, 2022.
He spent the first decade of his childhood in Beni, a city in the north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, before moving to Lubumbashi with his family.
Daryl had heard family, friends, and his home media recount the harrowing challenges of war when ADF rebels took over Beni in 2014, despite the fact that the rebel assault had not occurred at the time he was in Beni.
Beni was the site of heavy fighting during the Second Congo War around 2001. Between October 2014 and May 2016, around 500 people were killed in a series of attacks on Beni and its environs that were blamed on Ugandan Islamist extremists.
Though Darryl had not witnessed the rebel invasion first-hand, many years after the political unrest in DR Congo that most of us have only read about or seen flashes of in the media, he shared with me a deeper insight into how Beni was rocked by explosions and machine-gun fire; a terrifying experience, he was told, that he still recalls as if it were yesterday.
Progress
With a weaker English language compared to French, a reserved Daryl will take his time, when he is stuck between finding the right English expression to explain what he had to say. “I am a shy type and at first, it was challenging due to the language barrier but I am glad that I can now speak two official languages, freely,” he says.
The challenges of being independent after leaving his family for studies in Ghana may have contributed to Daryl’s development and improved his interpersonal communication skills. ‘Being on my own has let me out of my comfort zone. I was put in a position where I had no choice but to socialize”. He says ‘…I am more open to my friends now. Friends also want to spend time with me. I have friends who understand me and like me the way I am.’
Despite Daryl’s nostalgia sometimes, he is happy his choice has given him the opportunity to be more mature saying ‘I miss home sometimes but I don’t regret the choice to study outside of my home country.’
After School
Daryl is hopeful of continuing his second degree immediately after he completes his first degree with an eye on gaining some much-needed industry experience. For a career, Daryl will want to become an Entrepreneur with a keen interest in Marketing.
Despite his affable nature, like any human, Daryl has his dislikes? ‘I don’t like it when people make assumptions” he shares in his calm paced but fairly steady speaking style.
Hobbies
Daryl does ‘still life drawings’. Other things that excite him, he tells me are the beach, tourism and volleyball.
He advised other international students to remain focused despite the many distractions surrounding them. ‘I have some friends who sometimes get distracted by going out, drinking and smoking and they forget the reason why they are in school’ he uttered.
