Celebrated pollster, Ben Ephson, has predicted that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate for the Navrongo Central Constituency,Ms Tangoba Abayage, does not stand a chance of winning the seat for the NPP in the 2020 elections.
According to the renowned pollster, the acrimony which characterized the NPP’s Parliamentary primaries, leading to the election of Madam Abayage as the party’s candidate created disunity in the party at the constituency level, which will thwart the regional minister’s chances of retaining the seat for the governing party.
He observed that the friction between the faction of the incumbent Member of Parliament for the Constituency, Joseph Kofi Adda, and that of the Parliamentary candidate is so grievous that the party may not be able to resolve. This, he concluded, makes it impossible for the NPP’s candidate to win the Navrongo Central seat since it is not a “safe seat” for the party.
“Someone calling one a drunkard? I monitored the Navrongo Central and the acrimony which was being thrown. The insults! I realized that whoever wins will lose the seat ( in the main elections). The way they threw the insults at themselves and so far I don’t think the party has succeeded in patching the two up. Yes (the acrimony will affect her chances of winning). They used unprintable words and this is not a seat you can say is a safe seat,” he said.
Madam Tangoba Abayage, who is the Upper East Regional Minister, defeated the incumbent MP and the Minister for Aviation in the NPP’s primaries held in June, 2020. She polled 307 votes as against Mr. Adda’s 266 votes to secure the ticket to contest the Navrongo Central seat as a parliamentary candidate for the governing party in the 2020 General Elections.
Madam Tangoba Abayage prior to the primaries had complained about the level of personal attacks she suffered from her opponent’s camp.
After her victory in the primaries, she disclosed in an interview on Bolgatanga based Yem Radio that Mr. Adda had not reached out to congratulate her but she was hopeful that he will support her campaign to retain the seat for the NPP. She also expressed her confidence of winning the Parliamentary Elections on December 7.
But speaking on TV3’s news analysis show, the Key Points, Mr. Ben Ephson who is confident that madam Abayage will perform well if she is elected as MP for the Constituency stated that she is likely to lose the seat in the December Elections to NDC’s Samson Tangombu Chiragia.
He explained that members of the party who are loyal to Mr. Adda will either show pathy in the elections or they will vote for the president but vote against her and this will result in her defeat.
“If madam Abayage wins, she will do very well but I doubt. The people will either do skirt and blouse or not go and vote at all,” he concluded.
