Free SHS can’t win election for NPP - Yamoah Ponkoh

Outspoken Senior member of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and former Ejisu-Juaben Municipal Chief Executive, Yamoah Ponkoh, has fired a salvo at political analysts who have opined that the 2020 general elections would be determined solely by the free Senior High School (SHS) programme.

He also jilted the leadership of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) that they would be living in a fool’s paradise if they bank all their hopes on the flagship programme government is currently rolling out. The loud-mouthed politician noted that even though President Akufo-Addo has done a yeoman’s job with the introduction of the policy, that manifesto-fulfillment alone cannot decide the outcome of the next polls.

In his view, the nation-wide joy that heralded the rolling out of the programme by the president would soon subside; adding that issues like the state of the economy would be the major determinants of the 2020 elections.

“Issues such as bread and butter will-soon overshadow the free SHS programme so if the NPP thinks that the introduction of the policy will secure them electoral victory, then they are dreaming,” he said on radio.

He added that an important factor like the ever-increasing price of petroleum products would have more influence on voters than the free SHS policy.

Yamoah Ponkoh was the Chief Executive of the Ejisu-Juanben Municipal Assembly in the Ashanti region, during the erstwhile NDC regime but his reign was characterized by several controversies.

It was not surprising to many observers that the assembly massively rejected him when president Mahama nominated him for a second team as MCE.