Old students launch 150-million cedis in aid of library

Accra, April 25, GNA- The Dzodze-Penyi Old Students Association (DZOPOSA), at the weekend launched a 150 million cedis fund in aid of the Dzodze-Penyi Secondary School (DZOPESEC), library. Out of the amount 30 million would be used for the renovation of the school's library building, 80 million cedis for books, computers and accessories and the remaining 40 million cedis for furniture, fans and other refurbishing materials.

Professor Cletus Dordonu, Founder and Director of Cledot Consult, who launched the fund, said investing in computers and books for a school like DZOPESEC, was a step in the right direction, adding that education was expensive, but ignorance was more expensive.

He noted that DZOPESEC was one of the most deprived schools in the country, saying however that, research he conducted in the three major universities in the country, revealed that 55 per cent of the best students in the universities were students from deprived and so-called "mushroom" schools.

"The overall best student in that research was from Peki Secondary School," he said.

He therefore urged the government to focus more attention on schools in the deprived areas, as research has proved that the best of the national human resources could come from those schools.

Prof. Dordonu urged the smaller schools to access available support from international donor organisations such as JICA, DFID, SIDA and CIDA who are willing to support educational institutions in areas the government might not be able to reach.

He expressed concern about what he described as "the celebration of death and extreme socialisation" that most old students associations get themselves entangled in, saying that it was high time such associations were used to source funds and other support for the development of schools.

"I have always criticised the alumni of my alma-mater for the way they spend millions of cedis in preparing for funeral and parties, instead of using those monies to prepare the students in for life," he said. Dr. Emmanuel K. Sorpenu, National President of DZOPESEC observed that at forty, the current state of DZOPESEC is deplorable, adding that there was the need for the alumni to be united to change conditions at the school.

He noted that the school has no assembly hall, no permanent administration block, no bungalow for the headmaster, not enough bungalows for tutors, no home economics block and even the popular business block of the school is not big enough to accommodate the several students who apply for admission.

Dr. Sorpenu said several efforts to raise support from other sources had proved futile, adding that it was high time we looked within, for the alumni themselves to do something about the deplorable state of the school.

An amount of 14 million cedis was realised at the function. The occasion was also used to inaugurate the Greater-Accra Regional branch of DZOPOSA.