Agona Swedru, Nov 12, GNA - The Authorities of the Swedru Senior High School has banned birthday parties by students on the campus, Mr E. K.T Osam, Headmaster has said.

He said ban was intended to instill discipline in the students to enable them to concentrate on their studies. Mr Osam who announced this at a meeting of the Parent-Teacher-Association (PTA) on Saturday at the school called on parents to stop the practice and to wait to mark the birthday of students when they went home.

He said the ban was to ensure better results in the areas of studies, discipline and respect for the authority. The headmaster expressed concern about indiscipline in the school and stated that the authorities would not countenance habits that could lead to insolence and pride on the part of the students. He said there was a list of students who smoked wee, practiced promiscuity and stealing and warned that they would be expelled if they did not turn over a new leaf.

Mr Osam assured parents that the tutors would do everything possible to ensure that the students got good grades especially in mathematics at their final examinations and urged them to assist their children to study in the house during vacation periods. He said the school was making arrangement with the office of the Agona District Mutual Health Insurance Scheme to register the students, adding that they could use their cards to attend hospital while in the house.

He said the tutors faced problems when students fell sick and appealed to the parents to pay 30,000 cedis to enable their children to register.

Mr Osam commended the PTA for its assistance, which had made the school one of the best in the Central region. Nana Yamfo Asuako, Outgoing Chairman of the PTA, enumerated projects that had been implemented since he assumed office nine years ago. He said the PTA provided 32 KVA Generating Plant in 1998-9 during power crisis, new dinning hall tables, a two-story building classroom block, donation of a 32-seater Mercedes Benz Bus, two bungalows, a fence wall around girls dormitory and offices for the Old Students Association and the PTA.

Nana Asuako who is also the Chief Agona Asafo said the school would celebrate its 50th anniversary in two years time and appealed to the incoming PTA executives to assist the school authorities to ensure a successful celebration.

The PTA elected new executives members to steer the affairs of the association for two year with Commodore Albert Bentil Addison as Chairman and Nana Okofo Gyasi, Chief of Swedru Babianiha, Vice Chairman. Mrs Boateng Baidoo and Mr Edward Osei Acheampong were elected as Treasurer and Assistant Treasurer respectively while Ms Monica Donkoh was elected unopposed as Financial Secretary. The position of Secretary and Assistant Secretary would be decided by the authorities of the school as enshrined in the PTA constitution.