Don't mind their ‘utter nonsense’ that I pocketed $6m bribe for EC – Kwakye Ofosu

Speaking to to the media A former deputy minister of Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, has described as completely “utter nonsense”, claims that he stole six million dollars of money that was allegedly meant to bribe commissioners of the Electoral Commission (EC) to influence the 2016 general elections.

One of the Commissioners of the EC, Pauline Dadzawa, was heard on a leak tape claiming Mr. Kwakye Ofosu pocketed 6 of 12 million dollars that he was given to be handed to the seven EC commissioners as “gift”.

She claimed further that remainder was given to the sacked chairperson of the EC, Charlotte Osei, who also pocketed same without giving the other members their share.

Mr. Kwakye Ofosu however denied the allegations in a Facebook post Saturday and subsequently issued a statement threatening to sue Mrs. Dadzawa if she does not retract the claims and apologise to him.

The claims, he said, are at best false, baseless, malicious and a figment of Mrs. Dadzawa’s fertile imagination, because “at no time before, during or after the 2016 elections, was I given money by anyone for the purpose described by her”.

“I am by this statement demanding an immediate retraction of the malicious claims by Mrs. Dadzawa, failing which my lawyers have standing instructions to commence legal action against her and all others who spread the falsehood she peddled in the tape,” Mr. Kwakye Ofosu threatened.

Read the full statement below

STATEMENT ON CLAIMS BY PAULINE DADZAWA IN AUDIO RECORDING

My attention has been drawn to an audio recording making the rounds, in which a Commissioner at the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Mrs. Pauline Dadzawa, is heard saying that I took $6 million out of a supposed $12 million meant to bribe some members of the Electoral Commission to influence the outcome of the 2016 elections.

For the avoidance of doubt, the claims made by Mrs. Dadzawa are false, baseless, malicious and a figment of her obviously fertile imagination. At no time before, during or after the 2016 elections, was I given money by anyone for the purpose described by her.

I find it regrettable that despite her standing as a high-ranking official of an important constitutional body like the Electoral Commission of Ghana, she found it necessary to dabble in such petty and mischievous gossip. In the process she threw out complete fabrications in a manner that does harm to the reputations of innocent persons.

I am by this statement demanding an immediate retraction of the malicious claims by Mrs. Dadzawa, failing which my lawyers have standing instructions to commence legal action against her and all others who spread the falsehood she peddled in the tape.

I have also noted that some NPP activists, operating mostly from the Presidency, have splashed posts and pictures on social media that seek to use Mrs. Dadzawa’s falsehoods to justify yet another falsehood: that I was the subject of claims by former President Rawlings at this year’s June 4th event at Madina, that an official of the previous government had purchased two houses in Accra at $3 million.

While acknowledging that Mr. Rawlings did not mention my name or attribute the said house purchase to me in his speech, I wish to state that I have not bought any houses of the sort described by Mr. Rawlings.

It is a well-known strategy of the New Patriotic party to routinely target critical opponents with calumny and outright untruths. It is the same strategy that informed their fabrication of NIA cards in the name of some members of the Minority only for the NIA to issue denials of same.

I therefore urge members of the public to completely disregard these falsehoods and not fall prey to the handiwork of state-sponsored fake news peddlers.

FELIX KWAKYE OFOSU