Sometimes, one cannot help but convivially applaud some of our politicians for their incredible adroitness in the systematic propagation of propaganda intended to either hoodwink or proselytise unsuspecting Ghanaians into accepting their parochial agenda.

If we stroll down memory lane, one unique campaign message that dominated the 2012 and 2016 general elections was the poverty alleviation-free SHS.

While candidate Akufo-Addo and his NPP were promising to implement Free SHS if voted into power, candidate Mahama and his NDC were all over the place campaigning vigorously against the policy.

Regrettably, however, Ghanaians mistakenly bought into NDC's sugar-coated message’ in 2012 and turned down the seemingly advantageous Free SHS offer.

But lo and behold, on December 7, 2016, discerning Ghanaians saw the light and gave the Free SHS ‘promiser’ (Akufo-Addo) a massive endorsement.

To his credit, though, within a year into his four-year mandate, President Akufo-Addo estimably implemented the Free SHS to the delight of Ghanaian parents and their children.

Unfortunately, however, during the 2016 electioneering campaign, former President John Dramani Mahama was captured on tape emitting vehemently, “Hey! Ghana must not introduce Free SHS on the whimsical promise of a desperate politician.”.

“Many mistakes have been made by countries in Africa already with free SHS.”

“The government has budgeted 2 billion cedis for Free SHS for this academic year”. “If you have $2 billion more to spend on education, would you spend all of it on free SHS so that even when people can afford to pay, they don’t have to pay?”

It was, therefore, quite surprising when former President Mahama turned around later and asserted: “We started the Free SHS program, and the NPP came and continued it. Unfortunately, the implementation has been very poor, and so it ended us in double track.”

Since the implementation of the free SHS policy by the NPP administration, the minority NDC operatives have gathered momentum and called uncountable press conferences with the view of discrediting the programme.

In one of the NDC’s numerous campaigns against the Free SHS, I sighted a weird inscription on my maternal uncle Oliver’s ‘kum yen preko’ demonstration placard, which read:’ We don’t need the Free SHS’. “It’s 419...it’s a scam!!”.

Take my word for it, dearest reader, I nearly passed out on seeing Uncle Oliver’s incoherent and somewhat preposterous demonstration placard.

I thought I was dreaming. But I was not. I was wide awake. ‘Wonders shall never end’, our elders say.

My dear reader, I could not believe that my maternal uncle, Oliver, would have the temerity to deny his children Akufo-Addo's handsome gift of free SHS.

Tell me, my dear reader, which parent or guardian can resort to such irresponsible action?

I was in a state of puzzled countenance. A whole lot of thoughts were going through my mind.

I soliloquized repeatedly: ‘Is it the same Uncle Oliver who begged me a few years ago to pay for his children's school fees?

Honestly stated, Uncle Oliver’s idiosyncratic posturing shows how some Ghanaians could easily give in to the gimmicks of manipulating politicians.

I recall that prior to the 2016 general elections, I turned down my maternal uncle’s relentless appeals for some help towards the payment of his children's school fees.

The seemingly punitive, albeit conscious, decision was based on the fact that my maternal uncle bizarrely rejected Akufo-Addo’s 2012 Free SHS offer and went ahead and campaigned and voted against such an advantageous policy.

I must admit, though, that back then, I never thought I violated any accepted moral standards for rejecting my uncle’s appeal for help to pay for his children's school fees after turning his back on a handsome offer from Free SHS.

But who says that my maternal uncle changed his ways during the 2016 general elections?

In fact, my maternal uncle was among the millions of impoverished Ghanaians who were astonishingly brainwashed by the cunning and manipulating politicians to reject the Free SHS offer during the 2016 electioneering campaign.

And, after campaigning and voting against the apparent poverty alleviation Free SHS during the 2016 general elections, my maternal uncle turned into Oliver Twist; he asked for more, on top of his two children who were going to benefit from the scheme.

Strangely, my uncle was aggrieved that the policy did not cover his two older children, who were in Forms 2 and 3 when the policy commenced.

The fact, however, is that if everybody else had voted the same way as Uncle Oliver did in 2016, I am not sure any of his children would have benefited from Free SHS at all.

I remember leading up to the 2016 general elections, my uncle, again, had the audacity to lodge a complaint with my mother for turning my back on his fund-raising appeals towards the payment of his children's school fees.

So in her attempt to resolve the simmering dissonance between my uncle and me, my mother arranged a crisis meeting.

It was during the meeting that I informed my mother that my decision was based on the fact that her brother blatantly refused to accept the offer of free SHS by Nana Addo during the 2012 electioneering campaign.

“Well, but your uncle has never voted for NPP”, my mother retorted.

“Oh, so even if the NPP came up with a prudent policy that could be beneficial to him, he must still turn his back on such a policy because of his unbridled, devoted attachment?” I quizzed.

I proceeded: “Where is the justification for your brother to turn down such a handsome offer of free SHS?”

My uncle responded, “But where was the evidence that NPP was going to implement the Free SHS policy?”

“You don’t have to look far for the evidence, uncle”, I responded.

I continued: “Didn’t the previous NPP government deliver on its campaign promises by introducing social interventions such as the Free Maternal Care, the School Feeding Programme, the National Health Insurance Scheme, the Mass Transport System, the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP), the National Youth Employment Programme, now known as GYEDA, and many other social interventions?”

“Well, my nephew, I think you are making sense, but there is nothing we could do over the spilled milk," my uncle retorted.

“You are right to some extent, uncle, but we could put it right going forward”, I responded.

“For we should not and must not ever vote on narrow party lines, but we must rather vote according to campaign messages, competence, experience, ability, skills, knowledge, and the integrity of the candidates.”.

“Well, my son, your uncle has obviously simmered down and shown remorse, so go ahead and pay for his children's school fees," my mother proposed.

“It is too late, mom; I would not be able to pay for his children's school fees as I have other equally important responsibilities," I replied.

I nonetheless continued by urging all and sundry to embrace Nana Addo’s 2016 campaign message of free SHS.

I maintained that if they refused to accept Nana Addo’s offer of free SHS, I would not entertain any future appeals for financial assistance from anyone to pay school fees.

Gratifyingly, both my uncle and my mother promised wholeheartedly to scrutinise any future campaign messages of all political parties before settling on their preferred candidate or party.

Indeed, I was over the moon because I thought I had managed to bring my mother and my uncle from darkness into the light.

Based on that, I engaged in a carefully considered deliberation and went ahead and paid my maternal uncle’s children's school fees.

Regrettably, however, my maternal uncle did not heed my earlier advice, as he went back to his old ways.

Ironically, my maternal uncle was spotted wearing the NDC’s T-shirt and campaigning vigorously against the Free SHS during the 2016 general elections.

Dearest reader, isn’t it therefore bizarre that my maternal uncle, Oliver, who campaigned vehemently against the Free SHS policy, would turn around and ask for more places for his children?

The fact remains that my uncle Oliver, the ‘we don’t need Free SHS’ placard brandishing geezer, who now has three of his children in SHS, is pocketing not less than GH16598.49 over three years.

Sadly, it was the erstwhile Mahama administration that cancelled/collapsed the Nurse’s Allowance, the Teacher’s Allowance, SADA, GYEEDA, NHIS, the Maternal Care, the School Feeding Program, and the Mass Transport System, amongst others.

Based on their track record, it won’t come as a surprise at all if the future NDC government decides to cancel Free SHS altogether.