While sharing words of wisdom as guest speaker on the theme ‘Life after school’ at the first graduation ceremony of 83 students of the school, the former speaker and now executive chairperson of Family Rights Advancement and Protection (Frap) said: “You are about to start a new chapter in your life and you have an opportunity to shape your future. You are going to make many choices after your graduation which will determine your future. Only you can make your future great. After your graduation you are no longer in the position of being able to push off all of your responsibilities but you will have to take them up and be responsible members of society.
“It is important you realise that you will have a family one day and will have responsibilities to them. You are supposed to be planning for life after school but you are never supposed to plan more than you supposed to live. You are never supposed to wait more than you are supposed to do. And what it all boils down to is that life doesn’t bring a single day when things look like we want them to be. It is happening now; we are just choosing to ignore it. So it is now that you have to create for yourself the foundation on which you will be building the rest of your lives. You have to start planning now.”
The former speaker called on the students to develop self-discipline, which she said was key to success in life.
“Keep your minds open for other options, find your passion and develop basic budget for savings and investments. Avoid lifestyle inflation, and do what you love. Money is a great tool, but it is not the only thing in life. It is not even the most important thing and above all it’s more important to be happy than to be rich. You should embrace and support President Jammeh’s Vision 2016 initiative”, she urged.
For his part, the principal and former education minister in the PPP regime, Alkali James Gaye told the gathering that their goal was to complement government’s efforts in providing and bringing education to the doorsteps of Gambians.
He added: “Performance analysis data has shown an increase of overall percentage score from 49.45% in the first term to 67.4% in the second term. My priority is to make Yunus School the best in the West Coast Region if not the whole country. As you leave here, please try to leave a life of hard work and honesty in all your endeavours. This is another beginning of another process in your life. Please be ambassadors of goodwill and wherever you are you should remember your alma mater”.
The proprietor of Yunus English School, Yunus Sillah described the graduation as “another historic and indelible mark in our minds as it marks the first graduation ceremony since the school’s inception.”
He expressed his gratitude to the president and the education ministry for creating the enabling environment for them to operate. He urged the students to make the school proud wherever they may found themselves.
The ceremony was attended by Ebrima Dibba the chairman of the school’s parents/teachers association who spoke and urged the graduands to make the best use of the knowledge gained during their time at the school.
Prize and awards giving, drama, poetry recitation, as well as presentation of certificates characterised the graduation ceremony.
By Sainey Marenah
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