General News of Wednesday, 29 March 2017

Source: Showcase Ghana

John Dumelo narrates his side of the 'V8' car saga

John Dumelo John Dumelo

Founding Editor of GhanaCelebrities.Com, Chris-Vincent Agyapong Febiri has dug into John Dumelo and his series of past publications over "Stolen V8" saga.

Showcase Ghana went into Ghana Celebrities to bring out the conversation between Chris-Vincent and fine-boy Dumelo.

Here is all what Chris-Vincent wrote:

I was busy getting married and didn’t pay attention until after my wedding when I spoke to GhanaCelebrities.Com’s managing Editor-Godwin Nii Armah, who confirmed the story to me.

That night, I stayed at Golden Tulip–in one of their spacious Chalets, and coincidentally I was told Fred Nuamah was staying two numbers away from 510, where I stayed.

I knocked at his door mid-night and soon, we were talking about John Dumelo and his stolen V8. As a close pal of John Dumelo, Fred Nuamah had a lot to say–most of which I considered nonsense and an attempt to clear John Dumelo’s name.

However, Fred Nuamah confirmed that indeed the V8 has been confiscated, saying, this took place about a month ago–and it’s all a political witch-hunt, a brilliant attempt to taint John Dumelo’s reputation.

We had our post wedding private dinner at Labadi Beach Hotel on Sunday night–and after the dinner, I went to meet John Dumelo at my hotel, where we discussed in length his V8 saga.

John Dumelo also admitted that his car has been confiscated but maintained that it was not REALLY a National Security car even though it was imported into Ghana under the name of National Security–that, to his best of knowledge, this was just done to avoid payment of the required duty on the car.

Per John Dumelo’s cunning account, he bought the V8 from a certain “big man” who imported several cars into Ghana for National Security–and that perhaps his V8 was imported together with these cars, disguised as for National Security to ‘dodge’ customs duty.

So I asked him this; if a car is imported into Ghana as for National Security and the papers state so, don’t you think that irrespective of the hidden motive, the documents make the car a National Security property on the face of it? And with such a criminal intent, how would you erect a successful argument in any court, that the car is not indeed for the State?

And shockingly, he said; “yes if you look at it from that angle, then it’s a National Security vehicle.” However, that car was not part of the pool of cars the National Security ordered, it was just a tax invasion syndicate, gone wrong, he sort of explained.

When I asked John Dumelo to sue the National Security or the government agency that has confiscated his property for violating his civil property rights if indeed he believes the car is for him, he said, he had called the person he bought the car from and he was waiting on the next line of action from this person.

He indicated that he cannot bring a lawsuit against any agency in relation to the confiscation of the V8 himself because he had no real locus, as the car had not even been fully transferred into his name.

John maintained throughout the conversation that he was not given the car by Lordina Mahama–and that he did not steal any State car as being reported. Nevertheless, he somewhat accepted that there was something fishy about the car.

On why a car which was not for National Security would have a siren fixed in it, Dumelo said, he bought the siren himself for 2000 GHS to fix in the car…

For what purpose; he said for long journeys and to escape heavy traffic…

It was a long conversation with John Dumelo who seemed deeply worried about the V8 saga. He tried to explain to me on many levels why the car was not for the State but I couldn’t reasonably buy into his stories and my wife was waiting for me in bed, tipsy, so I had to end the V8 conversation to jump on top of her…

Fred Nuamah and another friend were at the table, where this conversation took place.