Activist and lawyer Oliver Barker-Vormawor has apologized to Parliament’s Appointments Committee for his controversial remarks suggesting that committee members are soliciting money from ministerial appointees to approve their nominations.
Barker-Vormawor, who was invited to appear before the committee after his social media post, clarified that his comments were intended as a whistleblower statement about alleged misconduct and were not meant to disparage the committee.
“It was never intentional to make disparaging comments about the committee,” Barker-Vormawor stated. He explained that his post aimed to bring attention to certain actions that needed to be investigated. “It is the statement of a whistleblower about some happenings that must be looked at,” he added.
Barker-Vormawor’s comments stemmed from a Facebook post he made, in which he questioned the payments allegedly demanded from ministerial appointees in exchange for their approval. The post read, “So all the monies the ministerial appointees are being asked to pay to the Appointments Committee just to get approved, are those ones not affected by ORAL? Strange Republic.”
Despite the apology, the remarks sparked tensions within the committee, and some members felt that such accusations tarnished their reputations. The committee had previously asked Barker-Vormawor to provide evidence to substantiate his claims, but no proof was presented during his appearance.
This development has prompted further debate over accountability, transparency, and the treatment of whistleblowers within Ghana’s political system.
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