Former President John Dramani Mahama’s claim over Free Senior High School (SHS) cannot win him power come December 7 because it came too late, Pollster and Managing Editor of the Daily Dispatch Newspaper, Benjamin Emmanuel Ephson, has said.
“Mahama trying to claim ownership of the Free SHS won’t make any impact, he laid the claim rather late,” Mr Ephson said this in an interview with GBC’s radio programme ‘Behind the News.’
According to him, the flag bearer of the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) claim that he launched the Free SHS in 2015 has rather come as a shock to the citizenry.
“But people would be wondering that if you introduced it in 2015 and there are videos of you criticising it, perhaps two years ago you would have explained your position but to claim ownership about two weeks to elections, I don’t know how they (electorate) will take it,” Mr Ephson told Ibrahim Oppong Kwarteng, host of the show.
Mr Mahama said the Free SHS programme was started by his NDC government in 2015 before handing over power to the New Patriotic Party.
The Former President has also repeatedly said the current government of Nana Akufo- Addo poorly implemented the programme, which compelled them to adopt the double-track system and that he will abolish the double-tract system if voted into power.
“We started the programme and the NPP came and continued it. Unfortunately, the implementation has been very poor, and so it ended us in the double track. I assure you my countrymen, that within one year, I will cancel the double track,” Mr Mahama stressed at Tuobong, a community in the Tempane District of the Upper East Region.
He has also promised that if voted back into government, all the Community Day Schools his government started would be completed so that all the children can get schools to attend.
Meanwhile, Mr Ephson, in a survey, announced that President Akufo-Addo will win the 2020 election with 52.6% and the leader of the NDC, Mr Mahama will come second with 45.7%.