I feel greatly delighted to welcome every Alumnus of our great school, Atakunmosa High School Osu, (Nulli secundus) to this National Congress which is the first of its kind after many decades of lethargic moves made to revive the erstwhile golden era of the school.

Brief Historical Background: Going down the memory lane, Atakunmosa High School, Osu was established by few founding fathers in Ijesaland on January 15, 1963.

The first Principal was late Hon. C.O. Komolafe who was then assisted by Mr. I.O. Fagbule. The latter became Principal of the school and administered till 1965 when Chief Ade Adefarati took up the mantle of leadership.  Chief Adefarati was the longest serving Principal of the school and his tenure could be rightly described as the golden age of the school.  The school started with 50 boys and 30 girls and I am happy to note that the first student to register as a student of the school then, Master Gabriel Ajayi, later Colonel G. Ajayi (Rtd) is in our midst today.

Our school, a good mother who has laid the golden eggs, and which has now been in existence for 46 good years, ironically has not enjoyed the goodwill and adequate support from those she nurtured to maturity.  There is no doubt that she has turned out men and women who can stand tall in their various fields of human endeavours whether in academics, public service, armed forces, professional areas and other reputable Institutions.

There are some Alumni who, after achieving greatness, even turned their backs to the school on flimsy excuses that they were maltreated while in school. There are those who display flagrant disregard for anything called Atakunmosa High School. Like the proverbial saying, the banana that nurtures the cocoa tree to prosperity has suddenly turned to be a bad tree. It is hoped that some alumni will stop biting the fingers that fed us.

MEMBERSHIP DRIVE

It is to be noted that there are only two vibrant branches of the Association as of now. These are Ilesa and Ile-Ife units of the Association.

I must emphasize that these two groups have been making frantic efforts to keep the flag of the school flying.  More grease to your elbow.  I wish to call on all others to establish branches of the Association in their areas of abode especially in Lagos, Abuja Ibadan and Osogbo.  It is hoped that the new National Executive that will be put in place today will work round the clock to bring this into fruition.

CHALLENGES:

What are the challenges ahead of us?

These are numerous to mention. However, some that can easily be recalled are

• the urgent need to re-construct and or rehabilitate the dilapidated school buildings;
• the necessity to construct a befitting Library complex for the school in order to aid the reading culture of the present students,   
• the regular mounting of workshops and seminars for teachers and students of the school;
• demonstrating philanthropic spirit through   donation of relevant and useful items to the school e.g Science/Laboratory kits, sports equipment and school bus;
•  Having a virile and functional National Executive with officers that are ready to make enough sacrifice for the good of the school

It is my prayer that today’s meeting will mark an unforgettable milestone in the annals of this great Institution.  However, all hands must be on deck.

At this juncture, I want to commend the efforts of our principals especially the Senior Principal, Pastor Adurodolorun, for their immense efforts at striving to maintain the good name of the school. They have been wonderful.

May the Lord continue to strengthen them.

Once again, I thank you for listening and wish you fruitful deliberations.

Thank you and God bless.