If you help teachers with housing and put my party to shame, our friendship will break – NPP’s Pianim tells Mahama

Veteran economist and senior member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kwame Pianim, sparked laughter at the 54th National Delegates Conference of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) on Monday, January 5, 2026, after jokingly cautioning President John Dramani Mahama against helping teachers with housing.

Speaking at the event in Accra, Pianim revealed that he had deliberately avoided asking the president to intervene in teachers’ housing challenges, despite encouragement from others to do so.

“Mr President, here’s a fourth thing I will not ask you for. Even though Thomas is very keen on me to say, ‘Ask the president to help us with housing,’ I said ‘no’,” he said.

He explained, in a light-hearted manner, that the NPP failed to adequately address teachers’ housing needs while in government, and it would be politically embarrassing for the current administration to succeed where his party had fallen short.

“I said, we didn’t help you with housing. Why would I let the president help you with housing?” he added, drawing laughter from delegates.

Pianim went on to jokingly warn President Mahama about the political consequences of such a move.

“So, I’ll tell the president, Mr President, whatever you do, if you help the teachers with housing and put my party to shame, our friendship will break,” he said.

His comments were part of broader discussions at the conference on challenges facing teachers, including accommodation and welfare issues…CONTINUE MORE READING>>>