Convenor of FixTheCountry Movement, Oliver Barker-Vormawor has accepted the challenge by the Ministry of National Security to provide evidence to back his claim that the Minister offered to bribe him with $1 million to stop his activism.
According to the lawyer cum activist, he has evidence to his claims and would release it in the public domain after the ongoing #OccupyJulorbiHouse protest.
Mr Barker-Vormawor clarified that the meeting he [Oliver Barker-Vormawor] made reference to was an exclusive secret meeting between him and the Minister of National Security, Albert Kan-Dapaah even before the first FixTheCountry protest in 2021.
“The Minister of National Security has issued a statement claiming that I was met with other FixTheCountry conveners and other stakeholders. I want to put it on record that the meeting I am talking about happened exclusively between myself and the Minister for National Security where that offer was made to me.
“I will release an audio into the public domain, which would confirm that the Minister invited me to a secret safe house location, that we should have an individual meeting between him and myself, at which meeting he made that offer to myself. No other FixThecountry convener was involved there,” he revealed on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, September 2023.
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According to the FixTheCountry convenor, the secret meeting he is referencing to occurred before the very first FixTheCountry demonstration in 2021, and it was not related to the recent #OccupyJulorbiHouse protest.
“A secret meeting was held between myself and the Minister for National Security at a safe house and he did request that I meet him and I have a recording to confirm this. And it is at that individual meeting that he made the offer for $1 million to stop the activism.
“And I want to be clear, this was before even the very first FixTheCountry demonstration, not for OccupyJulorbiHouse. I think there’s a bit of confusion in the public as well. In the very beginning, he the National Security Minister had told me personally, that they were worried about terrorism, and they’re worried that my activism would mobilize young people.”
Additionally, the convenor disclosed that the Minister had told him on behalf of the government that he was willing to offer him an appointment if that was what he desired, in order to put an end to his activism.
Mr Barker-Vormawor then assured Ghanaians that he would release the audio into the public domain next week.
Furthermore, the FixTheCountry convenor disclosed that two other meetings had taken place, one between him [Barker-Vormawor], the Minister of Finance, two lawyers representing the FixTheCountry pressure group, and a Major General of the Ghana Armed Forces, and another meeting among other FixTheCountry convenors, excluding Barker-Vormawor, and ministers of Cabinet.
According to Mr Barker-Vormawor, during the meeting between FixTheCountry convenors, and ministers of Cabinet, an offer was made to the convenors that they “drop demands to demonstrate and the government will set up a committee that they [FixTheCountry convenors] would be part of in order to investigate grievances.”
He, however, stated that the convenors rejected the offer proposed to them.
Background
On September 22, Mr Barker-Vormawor claimed in a statement to journalists that he and his colleagues had turned down an offer made by the Minister of National Security in a secret meeting.
The FixTheCountry convenor had also posted on X (formerly Twitter), on September 21, claiming that “The cabinet promised us $1 million if only we can stop the demonstration. We rejected!”
The Ministry of National Security responded by asking Mr Barker-Vormawor to provide evidence to support his claims.
In a statement issued by the Ministry on Friday, September 22 it acknowledged a meeting with the conveners of the FixTheCountry movement together with Ministers for National Security, Finance, and other relevant stakeholders, in 2021 to listen to their concerns.
However, the Ministry emphasised it had not offered money or appointment as a means to induce the activism of the pressure group.
The Ministry thereby advised the populace to disregard the claims made by Mr Barker-Vormawor.
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