Oliver Barker-Vormawor
A political activist, Oliver Barker-Vormawor has apologised to the Appointments Committee over a controversial post that sparked accusations of bribery among committee members.
The apology came during his appearance before the committee today, where he was accompanied by his counsel, Nana Ato Dadzie.
In a statement before the committee, Barker-Vormawor clarified that his original post was never intended to imply that committee members had received or demanded bribes.
He expressed regret for any misunderstanding his words had caused.
“I want to make it clear that my post was not meant to disparage any member of the committee. I did not intend to imply that committee members received or demanded bribes from any individual. For this reason, I apologise,” he stated.
The activist explained that the post in question had been misconstrued and was not meant to make any direct allegations of corruption.
He further addressed the confusion surrounding a second post, which had been presented by the committee. Mr. Barker-Vormawor explained that this post was not authored by him but had been published by a social media portal.
In response to the committee’s request, Barker-Vormawor agreed to issue a formal disclaimer on the second post to clarify that it did not reflect his views. He also assured the committee that his apology would receive the same level of attention as his initial post.
“I want to make sure my apology is as widely recognized as my initial post, and I sincerely regret any confusion caused,” he added.
The activist also explained why he had left the original post up for so long, despite the backlash.
“The reason why I have left the post on was because I saw that the words had been twisted, and it became imperative for me to maintain the post in its original form so that, if questioned on it, reference could be made for verification,” Barker-Vormawor explained.
By Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House