The Vice President, Mr John Mahama, apparently sensing what is known in Ghanaian parlance as 'Kululu' (fraud or corruption), is beating the drums as an early warning signal to persons involved in the award of contract for the free school uniform project.

He warned that government would deal drastically with anyone found wanting in the award of contracts for the sewing of school uniforms for pupils.

The law will also be applied if those in-charge of the programme default in paying for services rendered by tailors and dress makers.

"Those who will collude with the district assemblies to make illegal money or defraud the tailors and seamstresses or the state must better think twice or have themselves to blame when the long arm of the law catches up with them," he warned.

The Vice President's warning was contained in a speech read on his behalf by the Eastern Regional Minister, Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, at the 16th biennial conference of the Ghana National Tailors and Dress Makers Association on Saturday.

He assured the tailors and dressmakers that engaging them to produce uniforms for the school children was just the beginning of good things to come to the members of the association.

"You will be producing uniforms for the Armed Forces (Army, Navy and Air Force), the Police Service, Prisons Service, Immigration and all the institutions that government is, by law, required to clothe."

Mr Mahama said the government would not dictate to members of the association in the sewing of the school uniforms, contending that the preferred option would be for the tailors and dressmakers to organise themselves into factory-setting and start sharpening their equipment and skills because there would be a lot of work for all of them to do.

He advised the association to be fair in selecting members and in the distribution of the proceeds that would accrue from the sewing exercise.

He further asked them to specialise and sharpen their skills for the enormous task ahead of them and urged them to strive to further studies.

The Eastern Regional chairman of the association, Edward Frimpong, urged government to re-introduce participation by the association's members and apprentices in the Vocational Skills Project (VSP) which was initiated between 1994 and 1999 by the Ministry of Education through the National Coordinating Committee for Technical, Vocational Education and Training (NACVET).

He said that the programme greatly empowered the association's members and apprentices to acquire skills, sewing equipment and accessories at affordable prices.

The Executive Director of CIBA, Ralph Ameyaw, appealed to the government to turn its attention to intensive entrepreneurial training across all CIBA trade associations to promote growth of the economy because they were the engine of growth of the nation's economy.

The Omanhene of New Juaben, Daasebre Oti Boateng, who chaired the function, urged members of the association to strive for excellence in their profession.

He said that Ghana had gained great international recognition and therefore, they should guard against extreme short dresses and other dresses that exposed certain vital parts of the body in public.

Daasebre Oti Boateng urged them to sew with the intention of protecting the nation's moral fibre.