Tamale, April 1, GNA - Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama at the weekend advised students to be disciplined and to refrain from acts that would jeopardize their academic pursuit.

He asked them to go beyond their textbooks and research into areas that would improve on their lot and shield them against social vices such as sexual promiscuity and hooliganism.

Vice President Mahama made the request when he addressed student of the Northern School of Business in Tamale, after inspecting a 2.9 billion-cedi girls' dormitory project being sponsored by the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GET-Fund).

He assured the students that he would personally champion efforts to get the school computers befitting the status of an academic institution that had not seen any development for the past 30 years. Vice President Mahama urged the students not to be discouraged by the deprived nature of the school saying, "It is not the buildings that matter but how you conduct yourselves."

Alhaji Mustapha Ali Iddris, Northern Regional Minister, said the dormitory project was the first government-sponsored project for the school since its establishment.

He said a boys' dormitory and a dining hall complex would also be provided for the school through the GET-Fund.

Mr Mohammed Amin, Tamale Metropolitan Chief Executive, said a headmaster's bungalow would be provided, while the school's park would be fenced and provided with seats and a dressing room as part of preparations towards CAN 2008.

Vice President Mahama also inspected a 5.8 billion-cedi boys and girls dormitories at the Tamale Islamic Secondary School. He assured the students that he would liaise with the GET-Fund to get the school a bus. Vice President Mahama urged the students to embrace the study of science and mathematics and learn to coexist with Christians and adherents of other religions since Ghana was a secular state.

Vice President Mahama who is on a five-day official tour of the Northern, Upper East and Brong Ahafo Regions, had inspected the Tamale Stadium project, other projects at the Tamale Secondary School and the upgrading of the Tamale Police Park into a modern parade ground.