Renowned legal practitioner Oliver Barker-Vormawor has shared a transcription of a supposed recording of a conversation he had with former Minister of National Security, Albert Kan-Dapaah, whom he accused of attempting to bribe him with $1 million.

Barker-Vormawor shared the transcription as he opposed a ruling of the High Court in Accra, which ordered him to pay Kan-Dapaah GH¢5 million in damages after he was found guilty of defaming the former minister.

The transcription of the supposed conversation was contained in Barker-Vormawor’s witness statement, which, according to him, was not admitted by the court.

In the witness statement, the lawyer-cum-activist insists that Kan-Dapaah attempted to bribe him to stop his activism against the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government.

“The Plaintiff then told me that Government was prepared to pay me up to 1 million dollars, and that the payment could be disguised in any way the Defendant wanted. The Plaintiff then told me that I was a brilliant orator and that the money could help me build a political career, including contesting as a Member of Parliament or an Independent Presidential Candidate in the next election.

“I rejected that offer. I told Mr Dapaah that I was not interested in politics, as I had indicated in their earlier meeting in the morning, and that I joined FixTheCountry not for personal gain but out of an interest in seeing a better Ghana that gives everyone a chance to succeed,” he wrote.

In the transcription, Dapaah was quoted as saying that he was going to facilitate the travel of Barker-Vormawor, who appeared to be out of Ghana during the conversation, back into the country.

He was also quoted as saying that the former Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, was interested in the matter and would also like to meet Barker-Vormawor.

Barker-Vormawor ‘bleeds’ after court orders GH¢5m damages to Kan-Dapaah

Read the full transcription below:

Oliver: No, I mean, I think that, and this is one of the things which is important for both of us to stress, that the only way this can work is through a process of consensus, that we understand that the interests are shared. I mean, the question of how we deal with the youth problem is something that unites many people. You know? And I don't think that there is something that's necessarily opposed to or against the government per se, as you have appreciated that the conversations that are going on, people don't want to engage within a party-based framework. And we want to remove the conversation from that sense. You know? If there has been any frustration, it has just been in the initial responses, I guess. But I think we can reset and get somewhere on that.

Kan-Dapaah:
I agree with you.

Oliver:
Now, substantively, it's about how we do that. And I think perhaps maybe there has been a bit of misunderstanding between us because it is important that even as we engage, there's a sense of legitimacy to what we engage in. I was saying that, especially with the first meeting, what was going on around was that there were secrets and underhanded dealings; we didn't want to communicate what had been discussed in the meeting. And then, in the way in which you communicate with various people who have anxieties and a long sense of distrust, it is important that they feel a sense that you are accountable. And that's how a lot of those conversations have gone in that direction. So I hope we can put some structure down about that engagement process.

Kan-Dapaah:
Okay.

Oliver:
As far as I'm concerned now, I think the immediate thing is for me to come to Ghana and how we make that work. So this is where I hand over to you.

Kan-Dapaah:
Okay, let me put it this way. You can have my word for it. Your friend, the General, can also be the witness. There's no way that the security of this country will do anything to you if you come back at all; you can rest assured. That will never be our intention. I will never do that. Number two, quietly between the two of us, I should have no difficulty facilitating your trip in terms of logistics for you to be able to come down. We can start talking; probably the two of us can talk later. I would want my colleague, the Minister of Finance, alone to join me, and some of your colleagues can also join you.

Oliver:
Okay.

Kan-Dapaah:
And have a series of conversations. When we get to the point where we think we should make it public or enlarge it, we will then go from there.

Oliver:
In terms of the logistics of my coming itself, I appreciate the offer, but I think I would handle that on my end. But I also wanted to have a sense perhaps of initial scheduling and the schedule of meetings we were thinking about, because I think I could be in Ghana by Thursday.

Kan-Dapaah:
So you can have your first meeting on Friday, and probably get the Minister of Finance to join us for the weekend.

Oliver:
That seems like a good approach.

Brigadier Kotha:
Do you want it in a private location, or do you want it hosted at a military facility? Which one do you prefer?

Kan-Dapaah:
No, no, we will host it in one of my safe houses.

Kan-Dapaah:
I think it's also important that we manage the conversation around that. So the safe house might make sense.

Kan-Dapaah:
Yes, I think both the Minister of Finance and I have absolute confidence in you, so that shouldn't be a problem.



BAI

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