Thank you, Mr. Chair, and members of the Election Committee/Transition Team,
Outgoing president and executives of the Ketasco North America Alumni, President of the National Executive Committee of Ketasco Past Students Association, and fellow Ketasco North America Alumni and Alumni of our great Ketasco.
It is my distinguished honour to be entrusted with the presidency of our NA Alumni. On behalf of the newly sworn-in executives, I thank you all for the confidence reposed in us to lead our Alumni for the next three years.
Fellow Dzo Lalians, every one of us who passed through the walls of Ketasco carried with him or her an unseen history. It may be a good history, bad history, or anything in-between. No matter the individual histories that we carry with us, it is an undeniable fact that Ketasco laid a foundation for each of us upon which we have been building to reach wherever we are today on our life’s journeys. It is, therefore, incumbent upon us to do everything and anything in our power to uplift the image of Ketasco wherever we are and to the extent, we can.
As we begin the next three years of our mandate together, we will be taking some bold steps to make our Alumni relevant to us and to our Alma Mater.
To help us live out these bold steps and to move our Alumni and Ketasco forward, I have interacted with and discussed the formation of several committees that will be tasked with brainstorming on some specific issues and making recommendations to make Ketasco our Alma Mater the great school it is supposed to be.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank those who have volunteered to be part of these committees. In the next few weeks, the following committees will be set up to get to work immediately and will be expected to present their reports within three months or some other reasonable time period:
Education:
- To brainstorm the role our Alumni can play to make a difference in the academic pursuits of the current and future students of Ketasco and how we can harness our knowledge and resources to improve and add value to the education of the students.
- The Committee’s primary focus will be to investigate how we can make this possible.
- The following members have graciously agreed to take on this role: Dr. Enock Delaporte, Dr. Moses Dogbevia, Mrs. Matilda Baye-Akaho, Mrs. Akpene Abotsi-Ametepi, and Dr. John Kofi Dogbe.
Fundraising:
- The charge to this Committee is to figure out how we can successfully raise $1 million in the next three years, both from our own membership and outside of the membership.
- The following have also agreed to selflessly be part of this Committee: Mr. Ben Dotsei Malor (Chair), Dr. Quincy Attipoe, John K. Akpalu, Esq., Mrs. Akpene Abotsi-Ametepi, Mrs. Fidelia Klu Kwawu, Kwao Amegashie, Esq., and Mr. Vincent Kosi.
Finance Committee:
In anticipation of the fundraising efforts and activities, there is a need to have a Finance Committee that will recommend structures to put in place to ensure efficient oversight of budget and financial commitments and to ensure expenditures are in keeping with our priorities and resources. The following Alumni have kindly accepted to do the work for us: Mrs. Norvy Akaba, Mrs. Fidelia Klu Kwawu, Dr. Alloysius Kwakumey, Mr. Eric Gbekle, Mr. Cyril Zormelo, and Mr. Sammy Yador.
Welfare:
The members of this committee will recommend the type of support our Alumni can reasonably provide to our members. Quincy Attipoe, Mrs. Fidelia Klu-Kwawu, Mrs. Akpene Ametepi-Abotsi, Mr. Vincent Kosi, Mrs. Norvy Akaba, and Mr. Jacob Togo have all agreed to work on this committee.
Membership:
This Committee will be tasked with compiling a database of all past students in North America. The database will be used so we can reach out to the members via social media and other means. The members of this Committee are Mr. Jacob Togo, Mr. Vincent Kosi, and Mrs. Elsie Ziddah Dogbatse.
Constitutional Review:
Our constitution needs a review and John Akpalu, Esq., Mr. Grant Ayayee, Dr. John Dogbe, Torgbui Setranah, and Mr. Mawuli Agbenu have graciously accepted to take on this role.
Graduation:
When we complete our last paper as final year students at Ketasco, some of us exit the school and are never to be heard of again. Our Alumni have been working on a proposal to be submitted to the headmaster, board of governors and the president of the past students of Ketasco so that Ketasco can begin to hold graduation ceremonies for the graduating students. The committee will look into the finer details about how to do this effectively. The members include Mr. Vincent Kosi, Dr. Bernard Gadagbui, John Akpalu, Esq., and Ms. Dzogbenyuie Sogbe.
The recommendations of these Committees will be thoroughly reviewed, and decisions made on which of them we can implement in the short term and long term, depending on our resources.
We have also been working on a number of projects that we should be able to undertake in the next few months.
- Procuring computers for the school. The Alumni will be purchasing not less than 50 desktops and laptops as well as a server for the Computer Center. While preparations are being made for shipping these computers, we have also been looking into upgrading the Center to meet current standards. We expect the new Center to be functioning by February next year.
- The Science lab is another project that the outgoing executives have been working on and we will also continue the good efforts started by the outgoing executives.
We have a lot to do in the next three years. I would like to assure everyone that we will run an inclusive administration and I call on everyone to be involved. I acknowledge the vast knowledge and experience of each and every one of you. It is my sincerest hope that we all will put our heads together to make Ketasco great as it is supposed to be.
Let it not be said of us that we have the chance to contribute toward making Ketasco an excellent institution but failed to rise to the occasion. This is an opportunity for us to build upon what we have inherited and leave behind an enviable example that future generations can emulate. Let me close with a quote from Albert Pike:
“What we have done for ourselves alone, dies with us. What we have done for others remains and is immortal.”
Therefore, fellow Alumni and Dzo Lalians, we have the next three years to make the difference we want to see with Ketasco. I sincerely hope that we will work together to see a new Ketasco that would be soar high for all to see.
Thank you.
Dr. Bernard Gadagbui,
President.