Emmanuel Kwesi Dawood
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Central Regional Communications Director, Emmanuel Kwesi Dawood, was yesterday granted GH¢30,000 bail with two sureties, one to be justified, by a Circuit Court in Cape Coast in the Central Region, for allegedly having sexual intercourse with his biological daughter and impregnating her in the process.
There are two different cases that the Central Regional DOVVSU of the Ghana Police Service are currently pursuing against Kwesi Dawood.
The police have filed a case of abetment of crime relating to a supposed illegal abortion he allegedly caused to be performed on the daughter, who claims the accused impregnated her.
There is also another case of incest and defilement which the police are processing against the accused person.
Overnight Detention
Kwesi Dawood was detained overnight on Tuesday and sent to court on Wednesday morning, where he was granted bail with two sureties, one to be justified, at the Circuit Court 1 in Cape Coast and has been asked to return to the court on October 27.
In the first case, he has been charged alongside a man who the police say performed the abortion on the daughter, and he pleaded not guilty.
Kwesi Dawood in an interview on Adom FM on Monday had said the co-accused called Atta Mensah, is an Assemblyman and not a doctor as had been claimed by the complainants.
Case II
Kwesi Dawood is expected to be arraigned at the Circuit Court 2 in Cape Coast to face the second charge of defilement and incest today.
The accused person, in the company of two lawyers and three other people, went to Cape Coast DOVVSU Regional Office on Tuesday morning and was not let out again until the next day when he was granted bail.
The NDC has already suspended Kwesi Dawood from his position as Central Regional Communications Director, pending the investigation.
Bold Claim
Initially, Kwesi Dawood said the woman (Mavis Ayite), who is ‘pushing’ the girl (victim) to make the allegation, was a TESCON member at the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), and that it was an NPP agenda to discredit him.
Later on Adom FM on Monday, the same Kwesi Dawood said that it was his own NDC party elements who were behind the agenda he had accused the NPP of instigating, and said the NDC elements were doing that because the party’s internal election was drawing closer.
Emerging Issues
Kwesi Dawood hit the headlines when a woman who claims he impregnated her and abandoned her, alleged that the NDC man has been sleeping with the teenage daughter they have together.
According to the lady, Kwesi Dawood has allegedly been having sexual intercourse with his biological daughter since 2019 when the victim was 15 years, and in the course of the beastly act, the girl became pregnant.
He then allegedly got his friend to administer an injection to terminate the pregnancy last year, and according to the victim, she bled for more than two weeks.
The girl has claimed that Kwesi Dawood beat her up when he got to know she had informed her mother about the father’s incestuous act, an incident that ended at the Swedru Divisional Police Command.
NDC Suspension
In the ensuing heat, the NDC Regional Secretary, Kojo Quansah, confirmed on Monday that Kwesi Dawood has been suspended by the opposition party.
“When we look at the position Kwesi Dawood is holding as Regional Communications Officer, and for him to be embroiled in such a case, we obviously, are sad,” he said.
“In party politics, all the executives are one body so anyone of us who is involved in a criminal case automatically will have negative effect on the whole party. It is Kwesi Dawood who is being alleged to have been involved in incest but technically, his conduct is affecting all of us.”
Mr. Quansah said “we haven’t told him to go and have sex with his daughter but once it is alleged to have happened we shall use Article 48 of our party’s constitution to take drastic decision against Kwesi Dawood.”
“It has worried all of us, especially the administrator of the region. How can I stand somewhere and say that we do not know anything about what Kwesi Dawood has done?” he queried, adding “we heard it as an allegation and the victim has spoken, the mother of the girl has spoken and the police who are investigating the case have also spoken, so we cannot do any cover-up.”
“We want to put on record that Kwesi Dawood has been suspended as Regional Communications Director of the NDC. As a major political party, we do not condone such things. Even if our leader is found to have breached the law, we can take action against him.”
Dawood Denial
Kwesi Dawood has denied vehemently that he committed incest, and said his accusers are doing that to tarnish his reputation.
“Mavis Ayite is not my wife and has never been my girlfriend. The girl is not my biological child. I am ready to submit to any paternity test anywhere. There is no occasion that I have slept with the child. I am not a dog!”
Kwesi Dawood said “why didn’t they say all these things and wait when we have an internal election which they know I’ll be contesting? They are doing that to destroy my reputation. When it is time for internal elections, these things happen and so I am not surprised.”
“The lady is NPP TESCON at UEW so they are using her to destroy Dawood. She has been contracted to do it,” after which the same Kwesi Dawood said NDC internal elections are getting closer and he was aware some NDC elements are using the lady to destroy him ahead of the contest.
By Ernest Kofi Adu